Nurses' uncertainty about medical gloves safety during the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: Nurses, as the largest group of health professionals, are at the frontline of the healthcare system in response to COVID-19 epidemic. This study aimed to evaluate the nurses' certainty and satisfaction with medical gloves when exposed to coronavirus in Fars province, south of Iran. METHODS: Using convenience sampling, 400 hospital nurses during the COVID-19 outbreak were selected from eight hospitals of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (SUMS). A questionnaire about glove reliability, including protection in tasks, durability, integrity and tear resistance, feeling fearful, and focusing on duties, and the nurses' anxiety regarding their infection with coronavirus was distributed to the selected nurses to complete. 375 questionnaires were completed (response rate of 93.75%). Among the participants, 180 (48%) were in the corona section and 195 (52%) were hardly possible to have contact with coronavirus pneumonia patients. RESULTS: The mean score (SD) of anxiety about infection with COVID-19 for nurses in the COVID-19 section and those in the non-COVID-19 section were 6.08 (2.8) and 4.56 (2.58), respectively (p<0.05). The mean duration of gloves usage in a day was almost similar in the two groups (about 5h), but the number of glove replacements was significantly higher among the nurses in the corona section (6 times) compared to those in the non-corona section (3 times). The two groups were also significantly different regarding glove protection in daily tasks and glove durability. CONCLUSION: The nurses in the corona section had more concerns about medical gloves as a type of personal protective equipment. In addition to health education on controlling and preventing the spread of diseases, raising awareness about the reliability of personal protective equipment can improve nurses' performance.

Industrial lubricant removal using an ultrasonically activated water stream, with potential application for Coronavirus decontamination and infection prevention for SARS-CoV-2

Industrial processes routinely require the removal of lubricant from processed materials. This cleaning can be energy intensive and environmentally costly owing to the temperatures and the solvent load that are used. It is required throughout many industrial processes, notably surface finishing. This paper tests a novel technology that removes the need to heat the water, and reduces the need for additives, through use of a novel nozzle that uses just mains water and electricity to generate an 'Ultrasonically Activated Stream' (UAS). The UAS nozzle passes ultrasound down a stream of unheated water, and tests its ability to remove a variety of lubricants, from stainless steel, with and without the addition of degreaser, comparing it to the ability of the same water supply (when not ultrasonically activated) to remove the lubricant (with and without degreaser). Removal of the need to heat water by use of this UAS nozzle would reduce heating costs and allow areas of a plant or manufacturer that lack access to hot water to have enhanced cleaning. Reduction in the need to use additives reduces costs and is a requirement for surfaces that may be damaged by them. However, the implications extend further. If, in the current COVID-19 crisis, supply chains for solvents are broken, or additives and heating become difficult to access (for example to decontaminate PPE or an ambulance in the field), the ability to remove lubricant without heating (and, if necessary, additives such as detergents) is crucial, since the SARS-CoV-2 virus resides in respiratory secretions that are composed mainly of mucin glycoproteins, surfactant and intercellular fluid.