Fit-testing is a required process in healthcare. Every worker who depends on these respirators for protection must undergo a process that makes sure they fit and protect. This usually involves exposure to a challenge atmosphere, such as a water-based saccharine spray aerosol. If the wearer tastes the sweetness, he or she has failed the fit test.might expose themselves to a patient or an infected loved one.
I am a certified industrial hygienist and the former safety director for Kaiser Permanente in Orange County who oversaw thousands of fit-test procedures.I was perturbed by your reporting on the state’s acquisition of the N95 masks because its misses what the real problem is. Yes, California is paying more for masks and is probably subject to price gouging, but why is this happening? The answer is simply that the federal government has failed to establish national control over the acquisition and distribution as well as the production of necessary materials.By forcing individual states to obtain necessary material on their own, the federal government has in effect promoted unrestrained competition.
This inaction by the federal government means it will take us longer than necessary to return to normal. This could have been avoided if President Trump had shown real leadership instead of making inane statements.
opinion N95 means 95% efficient, or 5% of virus could pass through anyway?
opinion Letter to the editor: the LA times is worthless