School Nurse's using N-95 Respirators

It is the only approved emergency protective equipment for H1N1 for health care providers. In a recent poll by NASN, only 17% of school nurse respondents had an N95 mask.

http://www.nasn.org/Default.aspx?tabid=613

The school is not requiring it and I am not going to bring it up either. I think it is over-kill for all of the "potential" that we will see.

At age 40, you are in the under 49 year old age group that does not have residual immunity to H1N1.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=a8_2nrwYD1kM

" Swine flu may infect half the U.S. population this year, hospitalize 1.8 million patients and lead to as many as 90,000 deaths, more than twice the number killed in a typical seasonal flu"

“People who get infected with this strain happen to be the healthiest members of our society......

The H1N1 strain is genetically related to the 1918 Spanish Flu strain that killed an estimated 50 million people. "

Are you planning to get vaccinated? Does the school have a plan should you become ill?

We do not have the N-95 masks. We're still trying to get hand sanitizer more readily available. I do think we would be allowed to order them if we chose, but don't they need fitted? Also would we wear them around every kid with a cough? I'm not sure how we would use them.

CDC: Interim Recommendations for Facemask and Respirator Use to Reduce Novel Influenza A (H1N1) Virus Transmission

http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/masks.htm

CDC: Using Facemasks or Respirators at home

http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/guidance_homecare.htm

We don't have them. Honestly, I wish we did but I am not sure I would be happy about being required to wear them.