Issue link: https://nnumagazine.uberflip.com/i/1036040
10 www.NationalNursesUnited.org leak. When we pressure tested them, especially in the seams. Bernard Vezeau was the global strategic market- ing director for MICROCOOL and other products from 2012 to early 2015. He worked for Halyard Health, which was part of the Kimberly-Clark corporation until November 2014. When two nurses at a Dallas hospital became infected after caring for a patient with Ebola, Vezeau says he was relieved the nurses hadn't been using MICROCOOL gowns, but he was concerned by the way the company went into high gear to sell the product. Anderson Cooper: These gowns were being rec- ommended for use with Ebola. Bernard Vezeau: Aggressively being recom- mended. Anderson Cooper: In what way aggressively? Bernard Vezeau: We put a full court press to drive MICROCOOL sales. We told hospitals to stock up on our MICROCOOL products. We told 'em to have at least 8 to 12 weeks of product on hand. And that's when things became very diffi- cult for me. Difficult because Vezeau says he knew the gowns were not consistently meeting industry stan- dards. Anderson Cooper: There's a test for this, right? Bernard Vezeau: There is a test. And it's con- ducted in outside facilities. Anderson Cooper: So did your gowns consistently pass this test? Bernard Vezeau: No, they did not. Anderson Cooper: Was the FDA aware of this? Were they notified? Bernard Vezeau: No, not that I'm aware of. Anderson Cooper: Were customers warned? Bernard Vezeau: No. Customers were not warned either. Anderson Cooper: Why not? Bernard Vezeau: Well, because Kimberly-Clark knew that if they-- they told customers, it would cost us a lot of business. […] Michael Avenatti: At the time, Cardinal and Kimberly-Clark were in litigation against one another. And Cardinal had these gowns tested and, in fact-- the results were disastrous for Kim- berly-Clark. Anderson Cooper: What do you mean, "disas- trous?" Michael Avenatti: Well, if you look through the report, you'll see that 77 percent of the gowns that were tested failed. Anderson Cooper: Seventy-seven percent? Michael Avenatti: Seventy-seven percent. At hospitals like UF Health in Jacksonville, Florida, we found surgeons who told us they repeatedly experienced strike-through, with blood getting through their gowns and onto their skin. Some surgeons were so upset about it they took pictures of their bloody arms and gowns and sent them to the company. Anderson Cooper: Did you receive complaints from nurses, from surgeons at all? Bernard Vezeau: On these gowns? Anderson Cooper: Yeah. Bernard Vezeau: Oh, frequently. On a very fre- quent basis. Anderson Cooper: What kinda complaints? Bernard Vezeau: Oh, complaints of strike- through, sleeves falling off, ties falling off. Anderson Cooper: Sleeves falling off. Bernard Vezeau: Sleeves falling off. Sleeves fall- ing off during a procedure. To read the entire program, go to https://www.cbsnews.com/ news/60-minutes-investigates-medical-gear-sold-during-eb- ola-crisis-3/. Nurses may encounter issues with PPE on a more regular basis than events like Ebola. Issues with gloves occur— ripping, tearing, incorrect sizes, irritation of skin, other allergic reactions. Employers are required by OSHA to provide properly fitting PPE to employees that effectively prevents exposure from hazards encountered in the workplace (PPE Standard, 29 CFR 1910.132). The PPE Standard also prohibits the use of defective or damaged equipment and requires that employers provide PPE at no cost to employees. Issues with respirators, such as the ubiquitous N95 respirators, have been documented. Not all N95 models commercially available fit all workers. Respirators must fit workers to provide effective protection. OSHA requires employers to fit test all workers who use respirators at least annually to ensure the respirator provides the appropriate protection. During the H1N1 pandemic, one state released N95 respirators from the state's emergency stockpile. Hospitals reported that not a single employee fit-tested with this model of respirators. There is doc- umentation that commonly available N95 models are significantly less likely to fit women than men—in one study, as much as 5 times less likely. Further, one study looked at how much protection N95 respirators provided to health care workers while