ODESSA, Texas — Medical Center Hospital in Odessa has a mask problem. They only have about two to three weeks worth of masks left.
With masks not being shipped in like they have been in the past, Dr. Faye Armstrong-Paap has decided to supply the hospital herself.
"Our goal is to do about 2,000 masks for the hospital, although I just received word that they're going to ask for a more intensely protective type of mask that we will be working on to protect those who are most at risk. The masks that we're doing now are just the simple ones that we will need for average protection," Armstrong-Paap said.
While these masks may not protect people from COVID-19, the doctors and nurses at the hospital need these masks for other procedures.
"These are not for great protection against coronavirus. This is just to keep an operating room going because even with coronavirus here, the other problems that people have don't go away. If we don't have masks in the operating room, we can't do surgeries and so that's what these are for," Armstrong-Paap said.
They are working on masks that may offer a little more protection against COVID-19, and while they're getting closer to making that type of mask, they haven't finished that project just yet.
"We have a nurse who has a new style of mask that with coffee filters that actually almost passed the N95 fit test so we’re gonna look at that and see if that is something we can add to what we’re sewing now and to give them more intense protection for those that are in the high-risk areas," Armstrong-Paap said.
The doctors do warn, however, that whichever mask is being used, one of the most important characteristics is that the mask fits the face securely so that nothing in get in behind any gaps or open areas.
If you are interested in helping, you can join the Masks for Medics Odessa, TX Facebook group.
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