Do you wear a mask in stores?

[Badger]

If you only have a couple of N95 masks for what ever use they may be, how can they be sterilized after each use?


Cheers!

[Kwirk]

I don't know how well it works but some have been spraying them with alcohol.

[Ready]

I read an article this morning about face masks but now I can’t find it to post the link. The summary of the article was that health officials told healthy people not to wear face masks because they won’t protect you against the virus. But the author suggests the real reason they said this was because they feared the health care community would run out of masks if everyone rushed out to buy them.

But the author suggests that masks do provide additional protection against the virus when out in public. So I’m leaning toward putting one on if I have to go shopping at a grocery store. That is really the only time I’m out in public at this point. I don’t see any point wearing one if I’m just walking down the street to get exercise since I’m able to keep a good distance from everyone while doing so.

[Born2BRetd]

I had a box of 10 N95 masks that I ordered 5 weeks ago. I read an article about how health care providers are not being provided proper protective gear and it made me so angry to think they're out there risking their lives to help other people. I gave the masks to a neighbor who is a nurse.

[gerntz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Born2BRetd I had a box of 10 N95 masks that I ordered 5 weeks ago. I read an article about how health care providers are not being provided proper protective gear and it made me so angry to think they're out there risking their lives to help other people. I gave the masks to a neighbor who is a nurse.

Excellent.

[Bflotomny]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Born2BRetd I had a box of 10 N95 masks that I ordered 5 weeks ago. I read an article about how health care providers are not being provided proper protective gear and it made me so angry to think they're out there risking their lives to help other people. I gave the masks to a neighbor who is a nurse.

I hope this puts this mask shortage in perspective: A friend works for a laboratory that picks up specimens. Several of their customers do Colonoscopies. IMO this may be diagnostic but definitely optional. Yet these customers are performing 20-40 procedures per day 5 days a week. With necessary gown, masks, and gloves being changed. Where is the shortage? Where is the priority.

[Born2BRetd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bflotomny I hope this puts this mask shortage in perspective: A friend works for a laboratory that picks up specimens. Several of their customers do Colonoscopies. IMO this may be diagnostic but definitely optional. Yet these customers are performing 20-40 procedures per day 5 days a week. With necessary gown, masks, and gloves being changed. Where is the shortage? Where is the priority.

I decided not to get bogged down into the multitude of reasons why there is a shortage. I just knew that there was a good chance those masks were going to remain unused by me and that meanwhile medical personnel are reusing masks and/or making their own masks.

[Badger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Born2BRetd I had a box of 10 N95 masks that I ordered 5 weeks ago. I read an article about how health care providers are not being provided proper protective gear and it made me so angry to think they're out there risking their lives to help other people. I gave the masks to a neighbor who is a nurse.

If I had more than the 2 that I have already worn when working with spraying glaze in the ceramic studio I would do the same. I have too many former students who are now in the medical profession that I fear for.


Thankful there are considerate folks like you.


Cheers!

[Sunset]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Badger If you only have a couple of N95 masks for what ever use they may be, how can they be sterilized after each use? Cheers!

That is a good question.
I given a mask to wear for a short time at a medical center, so when I returned to my car, I carefully removed it and hung it up in the car.

I figured it hanging in the car, the covid-19 will die on it within a max of 9 days.
So if a person goes out grocery shopping every 3 days, they could simply rotate 3 masks.

My answer is Rotate the Masks.

[garyt]

I saw lots of masks in the grocery store yesterday. I imagine you'd see many more if people could get them. I have on that I only use if necessary. I had a cold and wore it when going to my Dad's house to protect him.

[notyep]

I purchased a pack of 3M N95s at HD Valentine's day weekend well before the general public panic set in. My wife's a nurse so she definitely needs them. I wear mine whenever I enter ANY enclosed public place. I do get looks but more of the kind from LV toting, Range Rover driving soccer moms who have never stepped foot in your average grocery store in the last decade.. "How and where did he get that??!!" their eyes clearly tell me.... Hopefully this pandemic will teach all of us the value of the gift of "discernment", knowing when and how to get prepared for turbulent times before the storm, not afterwards.... Now for some nice easy listening Sunday Morning music...

[Mod Edit:naked url link removed]

[tmm99]

Quote:

Originally Posted by garyt I saw lots of masks in the grocery store yesterday. I imagine you'd see many more if people could get them. I have on that I only use if necessary. I had a cold and wore it when going to my Dad's house to protect him.

I have never looked for or seen them in grocery stores but I still see them sold online including Walmart.

[GenXguy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Badger If you only have a couple of N95 masks for what ever use they may be, how can they be sterilized after each use? Cheers!

On the news last night, I saw them using UV machines to disinfect them. I later read that will weaken parts of the mask.

Since the virus dies over a period of days, it seems like you could just put it aside for a week if you don't need it often.

There's info online about disinfecting them with solutions.

[GenXguy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tmm99 I have never looked for or seen them in grocery stores but I still see them sold online including Walmart.

I think it was meant that people were "wearing" them in the grocery store, not that they were sold there. I went to 2 grocery stores yesterday and saw one person wearing a mask at each on. That was the first time. We still have no reported cases in our county, plus masks aren't easy to get a hold of, plus there's a plea for people to save them for the healthcare community, so those factors combine to limit public use, otherwise I bet there would be more people wearing them in public. These were not N95 masks.

[tmm99]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GenXguy I think it was meant that people were "wearing" them in the grocery store, not that they were sold there. I went to 2 grocery stores yesterday and saw one person wearing a mask at each on. That was the first time. We still have no reported cases in our county, plus masks aren't easy to get a hold of, plus there's a plea for people to save them for the healthcare community, so those factors combine to limit public use, otherwise I bet there would be more people wearing them in public. These were not N95 masks.

Ah, you're right. I just woke up...

[REWahoo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Born2BRetd I had a box of 10 N95 masks that I ordered 5 weeks ago. I read an article about how health care providers are not being provided proper protective gear and it made me so angry to think they're out there risking their lives to help other people. I gave the masks to a neighbor who is a nurse.

+1

While cleaning out the garage I ran across a box of N95 masks I had forgotten about. There were 14 out of the original 20 left. I called the nurse that lives across the road from us to ask if she could use them. I got an enthusiastic "yes!" in reply. She said her department was completely out.

[tmm99]

Quote:

Originally Posted by REWahoo +1 While cleaning out the garage I ran across a box of N95 masks I had forgotten about. There were 14 out of the original 20 left. I called the nurse that lives across the road from us to ask if she could use them. I got an enthusiastic "yes!" in reply. She said her department was completely out.

I keep hearing that too, but I do see a lot of surgical masks still being sold at online Walmart, Ebay, etc. Maybe the prices are too high and they'd rather have their masks donated, as the prices are all jacked up online. It was nice of you to share your excess masks though.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/100PCS-Disp....c100667.m2042

[Ian S]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bflotomny I hope this puts this mask shortage in perspective: A friend works for a laboratory that picks up specimens. Several of their customers do Colonoscopies. IMO this may be diagnostic but definitely optional. Yet these customers are performing 20-40 procedures per day 5 days a week. With necessary gown, masks, and gloves being changed. Where is the shortage? Where is the priority.

I had an EGD on the 11th in a dedicated ambulatory facility. I was scheduled for a followup with the G.I. doc for the 30th. I called the doctor's office on Friday and asked about whether my followup could be done by phone and the assistant said yes. She also mentioned that their ambulatory facility was closing down for now so maybe is happening with the ones you mentioned too.

[mickeyd]

We are advised locally that a mask and gloves are required in the markets. As I walked around today in our local store, I noticed that all others also had clothes on.

[stepford]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mickeyd We are advised locally that a mask and gloves are required in the markets.

Is this advice coming from official or medical sources?