N95s Should Be Worn to Prevent H1N1 Influenza Exposure, Says IOM Committee

[Chuck]

http://www.thompson.com/public/newsbrief.jsp?cat=HEALTHCARE&id=2338


N95s Should Be Worn to Prevent H1N1 Influenza Exposure, Says IOM Committee
Date Posted: September 3, 2009
Health care workers should wear fit-tested N95 respirators when caring for individuals with the novel H1N1 influenza A virus or an influenza-like illness, an Institute of Medicine (IOM) committee said in a letter report released Sept. 3.

The IOM recommendation applies to workers in both hospital and non-hospital settings.

The committee's report reaffirms guidance issued earlier this year by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Pointing to a "paucity of studies comparing the clinical effectiveness of respirators versus medical masks in preventing the transmission of influenza viruses," the committee said that current CDC guidance should be followed until or unless further evidence can be provided that other forms of protection or other guidelines are equally or more protective than the N95s.

"It is not the intention ... to recommend that all healthcare workers use N95 respirators, rather the use of respirators should be for those in initial contact with individuals presenting with unidentified febrile respiratory illnesses and those healthcare workers in close contact with individuals with confirmed or suspected [novel] H1N1," the committee wrote.

The report emphasizes that the use of respirators, although critical, is just one element in an overall infection control strategy that should include: innovative triage processes, handwashing, disinfection, gloves, vaccination and antiviral use. The committee acknowledged that policies on personal protective equipment may be influenced by the degree to which health care workers are effectively immunized with H1N1 vaccines in the coming months.

Copies of the report will be available from IOM at http://www.nap.edu or by calling 1-800-624-6242.

For more on this and other health care worker safety and health topics, see the October 2009 issue of the OSHA Guide for Health Care Facilities.

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: N95s Should Be Worn to Prevent H1N1 Influenza Exposure, Says IOM Committee

America's Registered Nurses Applaud New Institute of Medicine H1N1/Swine Flu Safety Recommendations -- and Call on CDC to Maintain Stringent Safety Guidelines
California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee

WASHINGTON, Sept. 4 /PRNewswire/ --

The California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee (CNA/NNOC) today applauds the Institute of Medicine for recommending strong patient safety protections for patients and caregivers to avoid airborne transmission during the ongoing H1N1/swine flu pandemic--and calls on the Centers for Disease Control to meet the same, stringent standards.

"America's registered nurses have significant experience dealing with H1N1/swine flu, and we know that we need the highest level of safety protection for patients and nurses alike, including the N95 masks," said Deborah Burger, RN, co-president of CNA/NNOC.

"We've seen infection clusters caused by inadequate safety gear, and hospitals cutting corners on their preparedness for the virus. We need to ensure that any guidelines improve patient care and safety in hospitals--not weaken it," Burger continued.

Tuesday the Institute of Medicine (IOM) issued a report, "Respiratory Protection for Healthcare Workers in the Workplace Against Novel H1N1 Influenza A," reviewing all available scientific literature, and concluding that the evidence on transmission makes clear that nurses and other caregivers caring for H1N1 and suspected H1N1 patients should use NIOSH-certified respirator masks of N95 or better that have been tested to ensure proper fit. They specifically argued that:

...the committee noted that in the recent outbreak of H1N1 in Mexico, strict adherence of infection control measures including the use of N95 respirators prevented healthcare workers from contracting influenza-like illness...One study that has been submitted for publication compared the clinical efficacy of medical [surgical] masks versus N95 respirators in healthcare workers and found that N95s had statistically significant efficacy while medical masks showed no efficacy...

On the heels of the IOM recommendations, the CDC held a conference call with healthcare organizations questioning much of the report, leading many nurse and caregiver organizations to fear that the IOM recommendations would be replaced with weaker standards not borne out by the scientific evidence.

The IOM recommendations come after a recent survey sponsored by CNA/NNOC of 190 American hospitals that found wide gaps in H1N1 safety preparedness. Nurses at 15 percent of hospitals report they do not have access to the proper respirator masks, exposing nurses and patients to infection; at up to 40 percent of the hospitals, nurses are expected to reuse masks, in violation of Centers for Disease Control guidelines and IOM recommendations. In addition, at more than one-fourth of the hospitals, nurses cite inadequate isolation of swine flu patients, increasing the risk of infection to others.

SOURCE California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee http://www.sunherald.com/prnewswire/story/1584448.html

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: N95s Should Be Worn to Prevent H1N1 Influenza Exposure, Says IOM Committee

Respiratory Protection for Healthcare Workers in the Workplace against Novel H1N1 Influenza A

Report, 68 pages.


Link:

http://www.iaff.org/09News/PDFs/IOMReport.pdf