Reusing Respirators and Managing N95 Supplies While Living Up to OSHA Expectations

Evan Sweeney, for HealthLeaders Media, December 29, 2009

"Employers must address in their respiratory protection program the circumstances under which a disposable respirator will be considered to be contaminated and not available for extended use or reuse," the directive reads.

Outpatient facilities and doctor's offices may have particular trouble receiving N95 shipments, so reuse of N95s may be a priority. Educate employees to wear a surgical mask over the N95, wash their hands when donning and doffing the respirator without touching the inside, and store it in a breathable bag, McFarlane says.

"Does that take more work than just slapping it on and taking it off? Yes it does, but desperate times call for more attention," she says.

Managing N95 supplies
One of the primary complaints from IPs and safety officers has been that N95s from state or federal stockpiles are often a different brand or style from the hospital, which means employees need to be fit tested again if they are going to use the masks.

Although it is certainly a daunting task to fit test every employee in your hospital a second time, MacFarlane suggests siphoning any outside N95 supplies to a captive population of employees.

For example, ER staff members rarely work outside of the ER, and would have access to their masks all the time, MacFarlane says. Therefore an IP could use the outside supply of respirators to refit that specific population, and save the in-house supply for the rest of the hospital staff members.

"Depending on the size of your hospital you might only have to re-fit test 15, 20, 30 people," MacFarlane says.

Not only will this system save time fit testing employees, it will also provide an effective respiratory protection system, and ensure a sufficient supply for the time being.

"I talked to an infection control practitioner at one of the hospitals and she really thought that idea of just fit testing a captive population might be a good way to transition, and it might buy you just enough time until your regular supplier brings out the masks again," MacFarlane says.

For more guidance on OSHA regulations including the directive for respiratory protection against H1N1, fit testing for N95s, and pandemic preparedness tools, visit OSHA Healthcare Advisor.

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Evan Sweeney is an editorial assistant at HCPro. He manages and writes for Briefings on Infection Control, a monthly newsletter directed at IC compliance. He also blogs for OSHA Healthcare Advisor, a resource center for infection control and safety professionals, and regularly contributes to Medical Environment Update and OSHA Watch, which focus on healthcare employee safety and health.

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