Shortages of personal protective equipment cause practitioners to make tough decisions
"Veterinarians pledged hundreds of ventilators for human use as a surge of COVID-19 cases risked shortages.
Some also described efforts to conserve or donate personal protective equipment, such as gloves and masks, amid supply chain issues as the stress on human health care strained supplies. That threat of shortages expanded as the coronavirus causing the disease spread to more communities daily this spring.
As COVID-19’s spread accelerated—the U.S. leading the world in confirmed coronavirus cases with about 400,000 people as of April 7, according to Johns Hopkins University—leaders of the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care started a database of ventilators that could potentially be used for human health care. The zoo veterinarian and veterinary anesthesiology colleges added to the effort in the days afterward.
Dr. Elizabeth B. Davidow, president-elect of the ACVECC, led the effort to create the ventilator database."
