The doctors and paramedical staff who are required to wear Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits while attending COVID-19 patients say they don’t find it comfortable.
They feel suffocated as air does not pass through it, which may lead to dehydration, suffocation, skin problems etc. With high temperature in summer, it adds to discomfort. In Delhi, a doctor fainted after its prolonged use. A PPE kit consists of garments placed to protect health care workers against infection.
“It is horrible to work with such PPE kits when temperature is above 40 degrees Celsius. Such kits are suitable in countries where temperature is quite low. But in country like India, it is punishment to put on such kits. Doctors and paramedical staff will suffer from dehydration, suffocation and other skin problems,” JUDA president Dr Sanchet Saxena said.
The PPE kits include gloves, masks, gowns. If it is blood or high airborne infection, the doctors are required to use goggles, face shield, gloves, head cover, rubber boots etc.
‘They’re air tight’
Gandhi Medical College dean and Hamidia Hospital medical superintendent Dr AK Shrivastava said PPE kits are air tight. “So, we relieve the doctors after they complete four to five hours of duty. It is uncomfortable but mandatory. It is just like rubber coat, which hardly permits air. This is how it prevents virus from entering human body. Once, it is used, it is disposed of,” he added.
