A quilt shop in East Texas is doing its part to help out during the coronavirus.
Stitchin' Heaven in Quitman met with medical professionals and with their guidance, created a video tutorial that details how to make face masks at home.
Since the quilt shop started reaching out to medical facilities across the northern part of Texas, they have received requests for more than 50,000.
The Centers for Disease Control says "In settings where facemasks are not available, health care personnel (HCP) might use homemade masks (e.g., bandana, scarf) for care of patients with COVID-19 as a last resort. However, homemade masks are not considered personal protective equipment, since their capability to protect HCP is unknown. Caution should be exercised when considering this option. Homemade masks should ideally be used in combination with a face shield that covers the entire front (that extends to the chin or below) and sides of the face. "
“Those masks are not considered PPE because their ability to protect healthcare workers is unknown. Hospitals may use them as a last resort if they don’t have anything else, but this is not the first thing they should be using. While I wouldn’t encourage people to just start dropping off homemade masks at their nearest hospital, a number of healthcare facilities have specifically asked the public for their help. At this time, there is no official guidance on which fabrics to use or how to use them because this is an unprecedented situation," said Brian Labus, Assistant Professor in the School of Public Health at the
University of Nevada, Las Vegas, who’s an expert on communicable disease surveillance.
Anyone interested in helping meet the need for masks can ship their masks directly to Stitchin' Heaven, who will deliver the masks to their contacts across North Texas. You can find the address and more information about the initiative by clicking here.
