Posted on 03/17/2020 7:45:21 PM PDT by rintintin
When news of a mysterious viral pneumonia linked to a seafood market in Wuhan, China, reached the outside world in early January, one of my first reactions was to order a modest supply of masks. Just a few weeks later, there wasn’t a mask to be bought in stores, or online for a reasonable price — just widespread price gouging. Many health experts, no doubt motivated by the sensible and urgent aim of preserving the remaining masks for health care workers, started telling people that they didn’t need masks or that they wouldn’t know how to wear them.
As the pandemic rages on, there will be many difficult messages for the public. Unfortunately, the top-down conversation around masks has become a case study in how not to communicate with the public, especially now that the traditional gatekeepers like media and health authorities have much less control. The message became counterproductive and may have encouraged even more hoarding because it seemed as though authorities were shaping the message around managing the scarcity rather than confronting the reality of the situation.
First, many health experts, including the surgeon general of the United States, told the public simultaneously that masks weren’t necessary for protecting the general public and that health care workers needed the dwindling supply. This contradiction confuses an ordinary listener. How do these masks magically protect the wearers only and only if they work in a particular field?
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Masks didn’t work for the ER doctors and nurses that have it now.
“What no one will say is that people in China bought up America’s mask supply as soon as the virus hit Wuhan.”
Confiscated.
That’s one assumption. Another deals with how many DRs already forget/ignore basic procedures and are too “godlike” to be reminded by lowly nurses. The book Checklist Manifesto examined that problem.
That’s how it should have been for the last two decades.
Waiting rooms are the worse place for a healthy person to be.
“What no one will say is that people in China bought up America’s mask supply as soon as the virus hit Wuhan.”
Confiscated.
Speculators. I personally saw cases going out of our local drugstore, although the lady who bought up the entire supply spoke with a Filipino accent. But she was clearly foreign, probably was going to make a lot of money reselling them in the Philippines on ebay.
Was it made specially for you and fitted to shape of your face? If not, it is not air tight. Majority of masks sold at Walmart (where I buy masks for wearing when doing dusty work) are not N95 type. I pay like 25-29 cents for each.
See post #21 as well.
The have (had) N95 masks and respirators in the paint section. You aren’t serious about “specially made for you”, I hope. If the real question is “Does it seal well?”, yes it does.
That’s what my doc told me yesterday.
I was referring to pre-wuhan times
Most infections occurred at takedown time, not just from the masks but from gloves, goggles, etc. And those medical professionals were dealing with far higher ambient viral loads than ordinary people would be. If the medical staff were not wearing protection be assured the infection rates would be much higher. Do you seriously dispute that?
And now that they have a twisted narrative that masks won’t help us, and there will be masks galore, are they going to tell us to wear masks or not.
SO why are doctors and nurses wearing masks are getting infected?
Which is proof masks are not fool-proof.
They supposedly turned a ship headed to the US with masks and medical supplies around back to China.
Right there is reason to keep the US Merchant Marine sound, and keep the Jones Act intact.
There may be other factor at play that explain that. Were they wearing eye protection? Doffed a mask and were not vigilant in washing, etc? Just too many variables that are unknown.
“Was it made specially for you and fitted to shape of your face?”
None of the gas masks the Navy issued me were specially fitted to me.
Right there is reason to keep the US Merchant Marine sound, and keep the Jones Act intact.
Better yet, bring manufacturing back home. Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan won’t like that, but screw em
Gofeki Tufecki.
Not sure I spelled that right.
Any kind of mask that provides any amount of filtering against tiny droplets of moisture will work better than no mask at all. Any mask that keeps those droplets from traveling farther will protect others from the wearer to some extent.
It’s all about viral loads, chances or odds and levels of immunity.
Not true . Even simple surgical masks do a lot to stop droplet transmission. That’s what people have been wearing in Taiwan, Korea, Japan, not the N95s.
I knew they were lying when “they” told us that masks wouldn’t protect us from the virus.......after telling us to be sure to buy N95 masks two days before.
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