CLEAN HOSPITALS INFORMATION NOTICE
Because of supply issues, many healthcare facilities are already or will be reusing N95/FFP2 masks.
The University Hospitals of Geneva, the EPFL in Lausanne and the ETHZ in Zurich have all been working on a taskforce to test different methods of disinfecting masks and make sure that they do not cause damage to the masks themselves.
We are still awaiting the official protocols; H2O2 vapor, immersion in ethanol, and active ozone are all disinfection processes that have been tested with positive results. We will send you these protocols once we have them.
There are numerous other processes that are being tested or are scheduled to be tested, including UV, heating, and further chemical means. Though UV and other methods are already being implemented in some hospitals, notably in the US, we believe that we need to test it for ourselves to make sure that factors such structural integrity of the material and the electrostatic charge of the mask’s material remain unchanged.
We are also working on a protocol of how best to get masks from the wards to reprocessing safely.
We sincerely want to thank you for the important work that you are all doing in this difficult time.
We will keep you updated with the latest information as the situation evolves.
