Breaking Down the Cost of P.P.E.s During a COVID Hospital Stay
Several patients who’ve accessed the healthcare system to treat COVID-19 infections are up in arms over the cost of P.P.E.s being tacked onto their bills. Personal protective equipment, as they are otherwise known, are a staple in the medical profession, especially during the pandemic. Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital has come under fire recently for charging an additional two hundred dollars to replace P.P.E.s that are being used during the treatment and care of COVID patients. The constant criticism has prompted officials at the hospital to come forward with an explanation for the surcharge. News Five’s Isani Cayetano reports.
Isani Cayetano, Reporting
The use of personal protective equipment, P.P.E., is essential in preventing the transmission of the pathogen that causes COVID-19, particularly in a hospital setting. The gear is primarily worn by members of staff who administer care to persons afflicted with the illness. At the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital, P.P.E.s are acquired by procurement and donation, but the cost of replacement is borne by the patient.
Michelle Hoare
Michelle Hoare, C.E.O., Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital
“I just want to be clear and to educate the public a little as it relates to the personal protective equipment. The charges are shown on the bill as a day charge for the PPEs and basically what that means is, for us, a day charge is a twenty-four hour coverage in the hospital for patients that are admitted.”
On hand to provide the attention and treatment that is required is a Patient Care Assistant who dons protective clothing, gloves, masks and goggles for the better part of an entire shift.
Doneisha Castillo
Doneisha Castillo, Patient Care Assistant
“It’s hot. The suit is really hot but it’s fulfilling to help the nurses with the patients. Sometimes, you know, you still get that fulfillment even if the patients meet their demise because you know that you help the nurses do everything that we needed to do to get that patient to where they were before, you know, that happened.”
While P.P.E.s do serve their purpose in safeguarding the wearer’s body from certain hazards, within the scope of occupational safety and health, they do come at a cost. That price tag has been an area of concern for those who access K.H.M.H.’s services and have incurred an additional fee. Chief Executive Officer Michelle Hoare explains the shift system and how P.P.E.s are used.
Michelle Hoare
“Each twenty-four hours is divided into two twelve-hour shifts and by standard we have changes for P.P.E.s, at least three changes per shift. Now when we talk about P.P.E.s, we are talking about a kit that is prepared. Before the staff member actually goes into the unit, a kit is prepared [and] in that kit, it comprises or it includes a full-body suit with the hood, a goggles, N95 mask, two pairs of gloves, boots. So it’s a kit that is prepared and the staff member would pull a kit.”
For Doneisha Castillo, a Patient Care Assistant, wearing a P.P.E. has taken some getting use to because it is confining. She started wearing them ten months ago and has become a necessary part of her daily attire.
Doneisha Castillo
“I just try to take in deep breaths and just do what I have to do and once I’m done I come out of it but we don’t stay in it that long, just a great period of time but we get use to it.”
Isani Cayetano
“I gather that once you have donned your P.P.E.s, using the facilities is out of the question.”
Doneisha Castillo
“Yeah, you can’t use the bathroom. You can’t use the bathroom until you’re finished, so what we try to do is use the bathroom before we put on the suit.”
During the course of a hospital stay, a patient may be attended to by multiple persons, each wearing a P.P.E. Those are all factored into the total expense.
Adrian Coye
Dr. Adrian Coye, Acting Director of Medical Services, K.H.M.H.
“It’s not even two persons involved in your care, sometimes it’s four or five different individuals and so when you multiply that by four times that you have to change in and out of the suits for the day, at least for five persons taking care of you, then that’s where you see P.P.E. as a cost comes up. So it’s certainly not the cost of a mask, first of all.”
The cost, according to C.E.O. Hoare, is in fact calculated based on the number of changes during the twenty-four hour cycle.
Michelle Hoare
“The charges really is for actually six kits in a twenty-four hour [period], six changes per staff in a twenty-four hour period. Now when you break down the price per P.P.E. that is used, look at two hundred dollars a day as is shown on the bill and you break it down by the item that is included in the kit, we’re looking at like six dollars and something cents per item.”
Reporting for News Five, I am Isani Cayetano.
