UArizona Nursing Volunteers Fine-Tune Homemade Face Masks to Address Shortage Issues

March 27, 2020

Doing their part to help out during the current COVID-19 crisis, community-minded University of Arizona College of Nursing staff members are aiding in the effort to address the face mask shortage that has challenged health care workers across the country. Three members of the Steele Innovative Learning Center, Yvette Mathesen MEd, BSN, RN, Paige Bravo BSN, RN, CCRN and Terry Bailey, BSN, RN, have developed a homemade face mask pattern with the assistance of Yvonne Flores and Diane Arnold, two members of the Corpus Christi Quilting Ministry. Their work has resulted in hundreds of masks being distributed as close to home as Banner University Medical Center and as far away as North Carolina.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines state that health care providers should use homemade masks such as scarves and bandanas for care of patients with COVID-19 only as a last resort since their capability to protect providers is unknown. The CDC urges caution when considering these options and stresses that they should ideally be used in combination with a face shield that covers the entire front (that extends to the chin or below) and sides of the face.


The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines state that health care providers should use homemade masks such as scarves and bandanas for care of patients with COVID-19 only as a last resort since their capability to protect providers is unknown. The CDC urges caution when considering these options and stresses that they should ideally be used in combination with a face shield that covers the entire front (that extends to the chin or below) and sides of the face.


Working within these guidelines, Bravo and Mathesen along with their quilting collaborators from the Corpus Christi Quilting Ministry have been diligently working on a fabric-based tie design. While seeking input from local nurses, Mathesen recounts one nurse stated that she used the elastic design mask, but that the elastic didn't fit as well as it was not snug enough to her face. “She liked the tie fit better since it can be adjusted to her face size or around an existing mask,” says Mathesen. 

The current design does not have elastic around the ears, a common feature in many DIY videos that have been circulating. This is beneficial because it will not break down with repeated use and cleaning, is completely adjustable, and can cover the N95 mask. 

Bravo and Matheson have already shared the pattern widely. With the help of sewers in New Mexico, Missouri and North Carolina, they have created hundreds of masks. Bravo has personally made 40 masks that she is sending to North Carolina and California.  Their collaborators at Corpus Christi Quilting Ministry have donated more than 100 masks to the Drexel Fire Department and a hospital in Vancouver, B.C., with the next batch earmarked for Banner UMC.  

“We are all in this together and it’s heartwarming to see our nurses working with community members to sew these for health care workers who may be facing shortages amid this pandemic,” says Connie Miller, DNP, RNC-OB, CNE, CCCE, chair General Nursing and Health Education Division.

People with sewing skills who wish to join in the effort can contact Diane Arnold at FaceMasksTucson@gmail.com in Tucson to get pre-cut fabric masks that they can sew. They can also contact Yvonne Flores FabricfacemasksTucson@gmail.com with questions about the pattern.   

Quilt Basket (6538 E Tanque Verde Rd #130, Tucson, AZ 85715) in Tucson is handing out our kits -- or one yard of free fabric -- so that people can make masks and drop them back off when completed. Calling ahead is recommended: 520-722-8810. 

How to make a SNUG surgical Mask, adult and child size

Designed By Yvonne Flores MEd. (quilter), Diane Arnold, (quilter), Yvette Mathesen MEd, BSN, RN, Terry Bailey BSN, RN, Paige Bravo BSN, CCRN

How to use: Place looped portion overhead, pull face mask up, secure nasal piece, pull ties to cinch sides tight and with tie to back or top of head to secure. 

Can also be used to preserve an N95: fasten N95 as per hospital protocol, follow above instructions to fasten mask over N95.

Materials:

  • Two 6.5x13 inch rectangles cut (length of fabric if possible) out of good quilting cotton fabric
  • One regular size paperclip (.28 mm)
  • One 2x42 inch strip of fabric (WOF-width of the fabric when it comes off the bolt)

Instructions for Adult Mask:

  • Wash fabric in a hot water wash to cause shrinkage and decrease size of holes
  • If possible, boil fabric to cause maximum shrinkage
  • Masks are boiled by the user to clean after each use
  • While fabric is drying unfold paperclips into shape seen in photo. It is important to turn the ends in so it doesn’t puncture the fabric and cause rips
  • Cut two tight cotton fabric rectangles 6.5x13 inches (the two rectangles will be the inner and outer fabric)

 

How to MAKE Paper clip cover:

  • Cut a 2-3" strip (length of paper clip) of batting (from scraps) by 1 1/2 wide
  • Place the paper clip inside it and then stitch around it
  • Center on the lining with raw edge to raw edge and sew all three together leaving a two inch opening at the bottom (FASTER)
  • The paper clip s cushioned, but it's still adjustable
  • Turn rectangle inside out and iron
  • Locate the thick fabric at the top with the paper clip wire.  Sew each side to secure the wire….see red line. 
  • Sew around the entire mask (close the two inch hole at the bottom of the mask)
  • Iron to set the stitches again
  • With the inner side fabric facing up, fold each end at 1 inch and pin to secure
  • Sew these ends three times using your sewing machine to secure the fabric (this is where the most stress is on the mask and we want it to be secure. This is where the 2x42 inch strip will slip in to make the mask adjustable)

How to make the strap:

  • Take your 2inchx42inch strip of fabric
  • Fold it in half and iron
  • Turn each edges towards the middle iron line
  • Turn each edges towards the middle iron line
  • Sew along the edge to close. Your strap is done
  • Place the mask so the fabric that will be seen when wearing is up and the paperclip wire is at the top
  • Thread the strap through going down on the left side and up on the right

       Instructions for child mask:

  • Same instructions as above EXCEPT, cut the rectangle square in 5 ½ x 12 inches
  • You will have to make an adjustment for the length of the strap because 42 inches is too long… I would cut it down five inches or leave it long and it can be cut when adjusted to the individual child
  • This pattern was designed after reading available literature to make the most efficient mask with materials readily available

Video Tutorial:

Reference:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020). Strategies for Optimizing the Supply of Facemasks: COVID-19. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/ppe-strategy/face-masks.html

Davies, A., Thompson, K.-A., Giri, K., Kafatos, G., Walker, J., & Bennett, A. (2013). Testing the Efficacy of Homemade Masks: Would They Protect in an Influenza Pandemic? Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness7(4), 413–418. doi: 10.1017/dmp.2013.43

Macintyre, C. R., Seale, H., Dung, T. C., Hien, N. T., Nga, P. T., Chughtai, A. A., … Wang, Q. (2015). A cluster randomized trial of cloth masks compared with medical masks in healthcare workers. BMJ Open5(4). doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2014-006577

Shakya, K. M., Noyes, A., Kallin, R., & Peltier, R. E. (2016). Evaluating the efficacy of cloth facemasks in reducing particulate matter exposure. Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology27(3), 352–357. doi: 10.1038/jes.2016.42