Snorkel masks protect our healthcare personnel during the COVID-19 pandemic

Doctors at Tygerberg Hospital have developed a very innovative way to keep their staff safe from COVID-19. Doctors now have access to modified snorkel masks to help prevent them getting COVID-19 whilst intubating critically ill patients. These masks cover the whole face, forming a tight seal and are usually used for snorkelling in tropical waters. They have been modified with the addition of a breathing filter where the snorkel would usually be. Using these full-face modified snorkel masks, the doctors are now completely protected from breathing in the COVID-19 virus whilst performing highly contagious airway procedures.

One of the hospital’s neonatologists and paediatricians, Dr Lizelle van Wyk, is an avid diver and was shown the mask by a diving colleague after Europe had started adapting the mask when the stock of normal N95 respirators became low. She approached both Dr Jack Meintjies, occupational health, and Prof. Pierre Goussard, a paediatric pulmonologist, to modify and approve this mask.

The modified snorkel masks are now routinely used by the paediatricians for intubation and bronchoscopy in children suspected of being COVID-19 positive. Tygerberg Hospital recently acquired 300 SEAC® Libera modified snorkel masks for use by healthcare workers to prevent them contracting COVID-19 from patients whilst working in highly contagious clinical areas.

Snorkelmasker beskerm gesondheidswerkers tydens COVID-19-pandemie

Die dokters het ’n innoverende nuwe manier ontwikkel om personeel te beskerm teen COVID-19-infeksies. Tygerberg-hospitaal se dokters het nou toegang tot gemodifiseerde of aangepaste snorkelmaskers om te verhoed dat hulle COVID-19 van die siekste pasiënte kry tydens intubasie. Gewoonlik word hierdie maskers in tropiese waters gebruik vir snorkel-ekspedisies. Die maskers bedek die hele gesig en seel dig om te verhoed dat water indring. Met die byvoeging van ’n asemhalingsfilter waar die snorkel sou wees, word die dokters by Tygerberg-hospitaal volledig beskerm teen die inaseming van die COVID-19-virus terwyl hulle in hoogs aansteeklike omstandighede moet werk.

Een van die hospitaal se neonatoloë en pediaters, dr. Lizelle van Wyk, is ’n gereelde duiker en het die masker teëgekom by ’n duikkollega nadat dié haar vertel het van die masker se gebruik in Europa tydens die tekort aan N95-maskers. Dr. Van Wyk het dr. Jack Meintjies van die beroepsgesondheidsdepartement en prof. Pierre Goussard, kinderpulmonoloog, gevra vir modifisering en toestemming om die masker te gebruik.

Die gemodifiseerde masker word nou gereeld deur die pediaters gebruik vir intubasie en brongoskopies van enige kind wat vermoedelik COVID-19 het. Tygerberg-hospitaal het ook onlangs 300 SEAC® Libera-snorkelmaskers aangeskaf vir gebruik deur personeel in die res van die hospitaal om die besmetting van gesondheidswerkers met die COVID-19-virus te bekamp.