Is there a more literal expression of the way our deranged economic system treats care workers than nurses being forced to wear garbage bags in the midst of this pandemic, as they pay the price for caring for others with their lives???? https://t.co/2523ojdOzC
— Naomi Klein (@NaomiAKlein) March 26, 2020
As front-line health care workers continue to warn of dwindling supplies, a frantic scrounge has begun across the region for protective equipment. One Houston emergency room doctor turned to Ebay to buy an industrial respirator meant for mold mitigation. https://t.co/asxR8VnaRx
— Mark Elliott (@markmobility) March 26, 2020
https://twitter.com/Terrence_STR/status/1243028432683970565https://twitter.com/lynnyoga/status/1243019205756071936https://twitter.com/fxmct71/status/1243168073999319047
Mike “Mish” Shedlock
This board has turned into the progressive equivalent of WWTD. I find myself coming here less and less.
Any pictures of luxury hospitals and their staff?
Ceders Sinai is next to Beverly Hills. I have never heard of anyone refer to it as a luxury hospital.
Seriously, Mish? In the photo the nurses are wearing trash bags over medical gowns… how does this represent a shortage of gowns?
Same thing in Australia. According to todays Sydney Morning Herald report, during February, China acquired 80 tonnes of Australian medical supplies and flew them to Wuhan.
Saw Cuomo on TV doing the “NY needs help” and “the Federal Government isn’t doing enough for New York” routine again today.
Meanwhile…in NYC….
Keep whining Cuomo – you look very presidential…
Trump suicide cult in full effect
It all Trump’s fault. If he would have spent more time ordering medical supplies instead of being a old racist white man we’d all be safe!
There’s an enormous gap between “we have 15 cases going to zero” and the President needs to order medical supplies. What the President needs to do is take potentially harmful pandemics seriously and get the appropriate people working on an appropriate response. Part of that requires listening to infectious disease experts. The government, and therefore I assume Trump, knew something bad was coming because many senators quickly exited the stock market. It’s not even that we’d necessarily “be safe,” but rather that we would at least be prepared to do the best we can to mitigate the health and economic damage of the virus. After all, Trump himself said we are “magnificently prepared” and are “preparing for the worst.” I guess trash bags were part of that preparation.
“Part of that requires listening to infectious disease experts.”
“Ferguson – whose ‘Terrifying’ research from just 10 days ago predicted 2.2 million deaths in the US and that the UK would need to be under quarantine for 18 months or more – now says that coronavirus will not overwhelm the UK’s ICU beds, and that over 1/2 of those it will kill would have died by the end of the year anyway because they were so old and sick.”
Ferguson originally predicted 500,000 deaths in the UK. Now he predicts unlikely to exceed 20,000. Even experts make mistakes.
Hospitals refuse to buy any ppe gear. There is plenty in the market for them at higher prices,they will only accept donations and government procured. That is why this exists.
Got a link where I can buy some to donate?
Cowshits!
WE BEAT CHINA IN NUMBER OF CASES !!
Trump starts news conference today with “Beautiful day”
Officially we have, but I’d bet China underreported by at least a few hundred thousand. Their death count looks implausibly low too.
I ignore Chinese numbers, Spain and Italy show the potential of this thing. China reports only one day of barely over 150 deaths. 143 is the next highest. The US is reporting over 200 and it’s only the early stages here. The problem is that the Chinese numbers have allowed so many people to downplay the risks. Often people who would never believe China on anything else.
For sure, it’s been hard not to notice people who despise China suddenly parroting PRC data as though it’s gospel. As you mention, their case curve looks unlike that of any other country. They had exponential growth, then a flatline.
The daily China numbers are often lower than those of Singapore, Hong Kong, or Taiwan, which is completely absurd.
There is something very very odd about the Chinese numbers and the strategy they present. It does not add up, at all.
Though I’m not up to date on what measures they have in place across the country, what I do know is that without strictest measures the virus propagates fast. In Hubei maybe less than 1% of the population officially caught the virus (but check my maths because this is straight from web) . That means 99% have no immunity, and restart of the pandemic there would be very likely.
So what has happened? Was there are vast number of untested infections, if so were they asymptomatic, or were numbers completely misreported ? Now they are locking down the country also, to outside.
The whole presentation gives me the creeps, for whatever reason.
There’s a mystery about China. Over a couple of months 20 million phones dropped service. Maybe its that they stopped reporting stuff or?
You folks who mock China should note that we are emulating their strategy of dealing with the Coronavirus, as if they have the world’s greatest experts on dealing with epidemics. We apparently aspire to be as good as China in how we deal with the virus.
It is not mocking China to look at their reported data and what is happening in Western Europe and conclude China is hiding something. Quite the contrary considering they kicked all reporters out of Hubei and put a tight lid on any information coming out of the country except through government channels. If they had been honest, other countries may have shut down all travel far sooner and avoided the worst of the lockdowns. In hindsight, everyone should have followed South Korea and Taiwan (countries that realize trusting China is absurd) and tested aggressively, but with the virus now running rampant in so many communities the China approach looks necessary unless you take a crass view to human life.
Despicable. Dump the douche Trump
Actually about ten years ago I saw a fashion show where the dresses were made of trash bags, it was trendy. Not the end of the world. A bigger problem will be in a few weeks when patients start dying in the hallways, like they are in Italy.
This is also another “hoax”. A reader has told me that the US is so awesome, that it’s already meeting the needs of the medical system. Most dynamic economy on earth.
The head of the New York non profit hospital group is Dr. Michael Katz. He makes $670,000 per year. Ask him why his nurses do not have PPE. Its his job not President Trumps.
And what IS president trump’s job, my trumpling? Stuffing his pockets with the whitehouse silverware?
Actually Trump donates his presidential salary to charity. As to supplies of PPE at New York hospitals that is not the job of the President of the United States. Can you imagine the outrage if Trump told the New York Public health system to fire its diversity consultants and community ‘outreach’ specialists and use the money to buy necessary medical equipment?
Trump’s job is not to ensure that every hospital is adequately equipped. It is the hospital administrator’s job and, for public hospitals, possibly the governor’s job.
Why would anybody make and store more product than you would normally use? The last time we had an event like this was 1918. Everything has a limited supply… except political bullshit. BTW Not a trump fan. I am voting for Ron Paul on November 3rd, unless somebody in the running walks on water or some reasonable facsimile thereof.
“Why would anybody make and store more product than you would normally use?”
You build up a cushion. Then go back to procuring what you use. Such that your cushion remains. Of everything required to maintain minimally acceptable functioning. There’s no benefit from living literally hand to mouth; with no savings, no food, no water, no fuel, no ammo, no anything at all.
The richer you get, the more is required, as your idea of “minimally acceptable” inflates.
But at the same time, the more space you have to store stuff in. Unless, of course, you happen to be stuck in an illiterate dystopia, where the number 1 goal goal is to make as many people as possible as homeless as possible. So that a small, connected cadre of entirely useless, expendable leeching nothings, can extract as much of others’ productive output as possible, in exchange for something as trivial to manufacture more of, as covered space.
Why do you need a refrigerator at home, since you can always buy your food just when you need to eat?
The shortage of PPE at New York hospitals predates Covid-19. Blame the Cuomo Administration or this as this stuff could have and should have been bought long ago in preparation for just such an event.
I’m heading down to the grocery store now to buy all their trash bags… missed the toilet paper boon, but I’m gonna be a Trashbag Tycoon!
Get me some zinc pills while you’re there, I hear it’s hot.
Have you ever wondered if in the depths of an outbreak whether healthcare workers will continue to sacrifice themselves in an overdose of corona virus?
In outbreak nursing homes in Europe and the US, minimum wage workers make the choice for their lives. There is also a correlation of higher virus exposure in medical situations lead to higher death rates in medical workers.
You might want to think of that in your blithe assumption of working unto death in plastic bag armor and homemade cloth masks.
Medical professionals in Hong Kong threatened to walk out when the government refused to close the Hong Kong/Mainland border. Our medical professionals will soon be defacto government. If Trump threatens to open the economy early, they can simply refuse to come in.
Well, Trump should be pleased the USA is No. 1 on the Worldmeter cases count. A lead that will continue to grow for the foreseeable future. Nurses better stock up on trash bags as we do not look at all prepared for what is about to happen.
We are the US. We go BIG or we go home.
Exactly. When the US was at 15 cases, instead of being ridiculous and saying the case count was heading to zero, Trump should have touted how the US would be the world leader before the end of March. Keep America Great!
We have been here before. Many Us emergency facilities ran out of Saline 2 years ago:
Severe and long-standing prescription-drug shortages have become a major threat to public health and patient safety. Despite increased awareness and mitigation strategies, the United States has experienced shortages of many lifesaving drugs and other supplies essential to patient care. There was already a shortage of saline solution, for example, when Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico, home to a key saline manufacturer, causing the problem to reach critical levels.
History of Saline Shortages in the United States.
Saline is an inexpensive product — it’s simply salt water — but proper manufacturing practices are required to keep it sterile, pyrogen-free, and free from particulate matter. Production demands are challenging, since very large quantities are needed: more than 40 million bags per month. Saline is required for virtually all hospitalized patients, whether as a component of a medication infusion or as a hydration, resuscitation, or irrigation fluid. Unfortunately, shortages of saline have become commonplace in recent years (see table).
I read some of the details. The guy that died was diagnosed 2 weeks ago. How long before that was he actually infected? Think they were wearing trash bags then?
I get that supplies are short and I think that is bad, but some of the stuff that gets posted is pretty misleading.
The Gold Fondler wants to scare you into clicking his gold sponsor links. They’re giving him $ per click.
IF anything, I’m going to read the headline backwards from most:
Cheap .02 trash bags work as effectively as 5.00 medical gowns. The reason medical care is so expensive is precisely because of stuff like this.
In reality, trash bags actually work, are plentiful, and are extremely cheap. This is economics working out supply. Someone needs to create trash bags now that come with pre-installed holes for arms and legs. Viola!
They make good clothing too. My trash bag tuxedo only cost me 35 cents AND it’s vanilla scented, so I don’t have to buy cologne. Score!
Patent that idea ! ! !
Next year’s Milan Fashion Week will be trash bag themed.
Matching masks will be all the rage.
Anoxia will replace anorexia in the modeling industry. Blue girls will be in.
They actually had trash bag designer dresses a while ago. As for Milan, how can you have a fashion show where there’s social distancing? Hmm.
They only work “very well” until you brush against even the slightest resistance and they tear. Or you get at all close to a heat source, and they melt. Or touch anything remotely sharp, so they puncture…
A tarp made from them, would work plenty well as a White House substitute, however.
If we sold the current White House to some Chinese, even in today’s depressed housing “market”, we should be able to afford a decent supply of better-than-trashbags protective gear for medical workers. Heck, the Chinese, being competent enough to produce such marvels of modern engineering as gowns and stuff, may even be able to barter us some, in exchange for for a white house in DC.
Spain is returning 340 000 test kits to China (down the page at below feed for reference)
China says their market is too big to oversee details like this. In the Spanish news they talk of just 8000 being returned ( I guess the rest were on order or unused or what ). Trouble was they only detected people infected 30% of the time.
Spain has a lot of commotion over supplies also, has its pictures of workers in trash bags. Whatever works I guess, but it is all close to outright negligence also. Same for masks, they announce so many hundreds of thousands of masks on order, but those are often surgical masks, not really adequate at all in an environment charged with virus.
Leaders in EU are doing what they do best to sort out anything – arguing over access to money.
Do you know the tear-strength of 0.2 mil plastic bags?
Have you ever worked in a plastic bag for 12 hours?
obviously none of them have, or they wouldn’t be so cavalier about it.
This is truly America’s Shining Hour. All praises to Dear Leader!
President Trump is DOING FINE JOB
TRUMP 2020
MAGA 2021
Can New York not order it’s own supply of medical gowns? Is everything the responsibility of the federal government? I think not.
“It’s just a flu”.
Watch out for New Orleans.
N95 masks can be used more than once if not full of blood
simply keep mask and put under UV-C for few minutes
see SOLVED SUPPLY PROBLEM in 1 simple task