Quantitative fit testing with limited supplies of respirator masks in hospital personnel during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Shanel Cameron,Rhiannon Hunt,Karina Griffiths,Atul Wagh,Nigel Cronin,Mark Kol,Amy Lawrence,Katina Skylas,Asim Shah,Lesley Innes,Winston Cheung

doi:10.1071/ah20154

Abstract

AHR explores major national and international health issues and questions. Our readership includes managers, policy makers and clinical staff in health organisations including government departments, hospitals, community centres and aged-care facilities as well as all others with an interest in the health industry. It enables health professionals to keep their fingers on the pulse of the nation´s health decisions and to know what the most influencial commentators and decision makers are thinking. It also publishes new research from practitioners - managers and clinicians - and reports of breakthrough projects that demonstrate better ways of delivering care.

Highlights

There is currently little robust evidence to guide the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and N95 respirator masks to protect hospital personnel from developing COVID-19 through hospital-associated transmission.[1,2,3,4]
Because of the limited supplies of PPE during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia and the lack of robust evidence that quantitative mask fit testing (QNFT) improves outcomes, there have been suggestions that QNFT not be performed in healthcare workers, predominantly to conserve PPE supplies
QNFT failure rates in the respirator masks commonly provided to hospitals in Australia at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic

Summary

Introduction

There is currently little robust evidence to guide the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and N95 respirator masks to protect hospital personnel from developing COVID-19 through hospital-associated transmission.[1,2,3,4] Studies comparing qualitative mask fit testing (QLFT), using self-examination to identify air leakage, to quantitative mask fit testing (QNFT), using an electronic device to numerically measure air leakage, demonstrate significant differences in leak detection, but have not conclusively shown that QNFT reduces infection rates in healthcare workers.[5]. Because of the limited supplies of PPE during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia and the lack of robust evidence that QNFT improves outcomes, there have been suggestions that QNFT not be performed in healthcare workers, predominantly to conserve PPE supplies.

Results

Conclusion