MIAMI (WSVN) - Two nurses who work for major hospitals in Broward and Miami-Dade counties are sounding the alarm about a shortage of face masks and other essential medical supplies they need to treat patients with COVID-19, and they are worried about their own health.
The nurses who spoke with 7News on Thursday, a man and a woman, said they cannot remain quiet.
“I am here to spill the beans, man, I’m not here trying to protect anyone,” said the male nurse. “I’m trying to look out for my patients, our profession, our families.”
When asked what her main concern is, the female nurse said, “Mainly the masks.”
But, she added, the shortage goes beyond N95 masks.
“We also don’t have goggles, the face shields, shoe covers and hair nets to protect from the droplets, and we don’t have enough isolation rooms,” she said.
The nurses, who asked to remain anonymous, said the few N95 masks hospitals do have are locked up.
“If we have a positive patient, they will provide us with a mask. Otherwise, on my unit yesterday, which takes care of cancer patients, including neutropenic patients, where if they get an infection they are screwed, they pulled our masks, they pulled our surgical masks, they pulled our CaviWipes, which are used to clean our carts,” said the male nurse. “I was even told — I was told not to say this — but if they catch us wearing one of these masks we are going to get in trouble.”
The nurses said, if they do get a mask, they have been told to reuse it and even put it in a paper bag between uses.
They said they are concerned about safety and bringing the virus home to their families.
“Me bringing something home to my children, passing it onto my elderly parents, is a major concern that I have,” said the female nurse.
When asked whether there is anything they think hospitals could be doing right now that they are not doing, the female nurse replied, “I think nurses, paramedics, [emergency medical technicians], patient care representatives, they all deserve hazard pay. Since you can’t protect us, at least pay us so while we are out of work sick, [so] we can take care of our families.”
“I have to work tomorrow. I will be there tomorrow unless they hear this and tell me, ‘Never come back,'” said the male nurse. “Even then, I am going to find a job. I take care of people, yes. I signed up for this.”
Several nurses who have spoken to 7News on the phone and on Twitter said they do not feel protected at work. They urge residents who are not severely ill to stay away from hospitals and urgent care centers at this time.
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