As I type this post, there is an awful lot of panic purchasing going on in the world due to the Wu flu COVID-19, or whatever you want to call it.
Anyway, there's been lots of panic buying of masks. Maybe gloves will follow. Some people are worried about food and report stocking up. I haven't seen any of that here. Yet. I am glad to panic early and beat the rush.
As others focus on their immediate task at hand, preparing for COVID-19, if it's coming, it's time to consider other items to have on hand also. China apparently makes 95% of the pharmaceuticals in the world. It wasn't the brightest idea to let that happen, for sure. So hopefully you panicked early and got your medications taken care of as well.
As far as sterile supplies go, these are the last few things to consider acquiring. Let's make it clear again. I am not going to be performing any surgeries. I don't have the training or the desire. These supplies are for a doctor to care for my family.
And some might be thinking, if things get that bad, I won't want to survive. That may be true, and there will probably be many who make that choice and don't prepare to this extent. There are definitely a lot of conditions that just won't be treatable without advanced medical support. But not all.
What about an appendectomy? It's supposedly very simple surgery, and often the first one surgeons in training perform. And appendicitis is a pretty common illness. It strikes without warning and we don't yet know how to prevent or avoid it. I'd want to be able to provide a surgical gown to a doctor who is working on a family member.
And what about childbirth? Perinatal infections were a leading cause of death among women until physicians started washing their hands and antibiotics came on the scene. In a compromised situation, I'd definitely want everyone attending to my daughters and daughter-in-law to be wearing sterile gowns and gloves.
Sterile surgical gown. Doctors are not loading up on sterile gowns to attend to people outside their own families. There are a few options to choose from. Basically, you'll need to decide whether you want to get disposable or reusable. And you may want to get a few, even if they are reusable. The doctor usually doesn't operate alone. His assistant should have a sterile gown as well.
Sterile gloves. The boxes of gloves we've already discussed and stockpiled are not sterile. They are not suited for surgeries. Sterile gloves are individually packaged and will run about a dollar a pair on a good day.
Sterile towels. Sterile towels may be purchased in packages as such, or you can get regular surgical towels that are reusable and durable enough for autoclaving. The initial cost is about the same, but the reusable ones are, duh, reusable. The disposable sterile towels will not stand up to repeated autoclaving. Sterile towels will be used much more often than sterile gowns and gloves. Anytime there is any stitching to be done, it's important to cover the surrounding area with sterile towels or drapes to prevent the suture material from coming into contact with contaminants.
Links to related posts:
Wrapping Instruments for Sterilization
Sterilizing with a Pressure Canner
Appendicitis
5 february 2023
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ReplyDelete"Panic early and beat the rush." I loved that comment.
ReplyDeleteI correspond with a list of people who are more interested than most in survival-related topics. Others on the list, such as family members, are people I am trying to proselytize concerning preparedness.
Up until a week ago, I was reporting what was happening in China and was giving advice and pointers about what to acquire and how to react to developments, although I was not making flat out assertions that what was happening was "coming to a theater near you." Now, I am.
Those who listened to me found N95 masks, for example, at uninflated prices. I believe that it was January 24 or 25 that I purchased American-made N95 masks for $8.95 for a box of 25 masks. I recommended to my list that each of them acquire the masks before the price shot up. The next day, I saw that the price was bumped by the vendor to $12.95 for the same 25 mask package.
Of course, these masks are completely gone now. What is interesting is that the same vendor had a wide array of military surplus gas masks earlier this month. Now, every last gas masks, save one type, is sold out.
Given the fact that so many people were completely bound and constrained by the Normalcy Bias, they will pay substantially higher prices for the preparedness supplies they attempt to acquire in order to deal with the coronavirus. That is all part of the human condition. It will not change.
You wrote, "And some might be thinking, if things get that bad, I won't want to survive." That is exactly what many will say now, and they will say this because it is part of their head-in-the-sand approach. They feel better about themselves and the fact that they are doing nothing. So many cavalierly dismiss the need to do anything because it makes many feel more "macho" in the face of death. Yet, it is a cop out, plain and simple. (And while they are free to make such decisions for themselves, they ignore the impact of their decisions on others who depend on them.)
I suppose that this attitude is quite liberating for them because they won't have to make hard decisions now, e.g., buying masks and disinfectant vs. a new hairdryer, Blu-Ray player, or set of mechanic's tools they have their eyes on.
I can only point out that those who cavalierly say that they wouldn't want to live in this world after a certain point in a pandemic should look to Auschwitz, Treblinka, etc. No matter how bleak and hopeless their situation there, few volunteered and said, "Take me next!"
Oh, wow, "look to Auschwitz..." Absolutely. How many Jews lined up to be taken to the camps, or in the camps, how many volunteered to go to their deaths so that someone else could live a little longer.
DeleteThanks so much for your comment.