Last week, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urged Americans to cover their faces in public, even if it’s with something as simple as a bandanna. Wearing a mask probably won’t stop you from catching the novel coronavirus, but a large percentage of infected people don’t show symptoms, and it might limit how much virus you shed if you’ve got COVID-19 without knowing it. As Nicole Wetsman writes, we can also think of this as a large-scale test of how well masks work, so we’ll be better prepared for a future disease outbreak.
With supply chains like Amazon overwhelmed and many products conserved for medical personnel, though, many of us have had to improvise. Some Verge staffers have sewn their own masks. Some attempted the simple “scarf over the face” trick. The results have varied, but here’s what we’ve learned about our chosen methods.
Adi Robertson, Senior Reporter
So I made masks for myself and my husband this weekend, using these guides and some fabric I found in a closet. You basically trace a pattern from your computer screen, cut layers and sew them together, then fold the sides to make channels for string or elastic ties. If you’ve got a sewing machine it’s not too difficult. I’m a sporadic and sloppy seamstress, and I managed it. But that’s obviously a massive “if.”
I don’t have any elastic, so I’m stuck with some finicky yarn for the earbands, and my husband’s mask doesn’t totally fit his beard. (Facial hair: a menace to society?) I feel like a Mortal Kombat character in mine. As long as I don’t talk much, though, it’s comfortable and it stayed on well during a drugstore run.
Am I overcomplicating things out of some primal desire for a feeling of control? I’m curious how people using simpler methods have been doing.
The new coronavirus is spreading through the US, and several states have made emergency declarations. The World Health Organization has declared it a pandemic. Here are the basics:
Mary Beth Griggs, Science Editor
Well, I went with the simplest method that’s ever been suggested at a White House press briefing, short of straight-up ignoring the latest CDC guidance and not wearing a mask at all. I wrapped a scarf around my face during a grocery run, and I must report that it was a complete disaster.
Walking into the store from the parking lot was perfectly fine, but by the time I reached the cart corral the fabric started to slip down my nose. I avoided touching my face and tugged it back into place using the ends of the scarf. Unfortunately, that genius move had the side effect of tightening the scarf around my neck. I kept fiddling with it while I wiped down the cart handle. Finally, I felt good about my bandit-looking scarf-mask, and I headed for the produce section. Before I’d gotten to the tomatoes, I’d hiked it up my face twice. The stupid scarf was making me touch my face way more than maskless-me would.
There was nowhere to wash my hands before or after each inadvertent face-touch, so I knew I was either potentially exposing people to my germs or getting exposed to their germs. By the time I reached the hummus, I gave up. For the rest of the trip, I went barefaced and endured the reproachful glares of my fellow shoppers. (Maybe they were smiling sympathetically. I couldn’t tell; they were mostly wearing masks.)
I’m going to have to find another option, but without a sewing machine, I’m not going to be able to match Adi’s badass Mortal Kombat style — do other people have better ideas?
Nicole Wetsman, Science Reporter
I pulled two fabric options out of the depths of my closet: an old cotton t-shirt, and a polyester tie-dye scarf that probably came from Party City. The scarf is very thin and flimsy but big enough to fold over a few times. The cotton T-shirt, on the other hand, is a boring black.
I can’t sew or craft at all, so I used the “fold and secure with rubber bands technique” that the US Surgeon General demoed on both options. I found very old rubber bands that I think came from a rubber band ball kit I used as a birthday party favor in the third grade.
I haven’t taken either out into the world yet, but I wore them around the house. They seem okay. Both stayed in place, and if I put my hand in front of them, I could feel less air coming through than I would with no mask. Tiny virus particles are definitely small enough to sneak through, but at this point, I guess something is better than nothing. Even if only to signal to myself (and other people) that I’m taking this as seriously as I can.
When I go to the store, I’ll probably wear the cotton T-shirt mask. It’s much more washable. The tie-dye is fun, but I think it would melt the second it went into a hot dryer.
Barbara Krasnoff, Reviews Editor
Right now, I’m using a commercial cotton face mask that I bought a couple of years ago to wear while spraying some rather nasty insecticide. I’m glad to have it, but after several handwashes, I’ve realized that it’s not going to last forever. So I’ve started looking for patterns. And looking. There are a lot of them out there — and yes, most of them assume you’ve got a sewing machine.
While I can sew a reasonable seam by hand — in fact, I was very into crewel and embroidery once upon a time — I don’t have a sewing machine. So there’s that.
At first, I was going to try the one described by The New York Times. But each time I read it, it looked more and more complicated. The same with many others. I think I’ve finally found one that I can try, posted by Mary Robinette Kowal, a writer and puppeteer (and all-around nice person). While she uses a sewing machine, her pattern is simple enough so that even I might be able to handle it.
However, in second place is the mask made out of a sock. I love the ingenuity of this, although it would probably make most medical professionals wince. I imagine that the weave of your typical sock is loose enough to let a pebble through, never mind a virus. But it would certainly be better than nothing, and it looks like anyone could do it in about five minutes.
Russell Brandom, Policy Editor
I already had a cloth mask handy going into this, although I will admit this is the first time I’ve actually worn it. It’s a nice multiply cloth thing in a lovely plaid pattern. A friend of mine bought a crate of them from China as part of a retail scheme that ultimately fell through, at which point he started giving them away. (I shudder to think how much that crate would be worth now.) It’s generally fine, although it fastens over the mouth with little elastic loops that are way too long and I’ve had to knot them just to keep it in place. Also, my glasses keep fogging up, so I often just take them off, which I suppose increases my risk of ocular contraction.
Natt Garun, Senior Reviewer
I admittedly haven’t gone outside much given that I’m considered high risk, but when I have to go to a grocery store, I try to cover my face with a combination of turtlenecks, high-collar jackets, and a scarf. I’m honestly not sure how effective that is, but it does give me a small (and perhaps false) sense of security, and hopefully it does for other people that have to be around me. This weekend, I plan to fashion some more face coverings that are a little more warm weather-friendly now that it’s getting springlike in New York City, using a fold method with bandanas and fabric scraps to last us until we get a shipment of face masks that our family members are sending in the mail.
Grayson Blackmon, Senior Motion Designer
My family already had some N99masks for outside work from quite a while ago with replaceable filters, so we’re actually pretty okay in that regard. My father in Mississippi, though, has cobbled together some truly ingenious face coverings. He’s used a pattern to turn a T-shirt into a tight wraparound mask as well as using bandanas and paper towels. But his true pièce de résistance is his converted CPAP face covering. He’s made a makeshift filter using a ziplock bag stuffed with cotton balls, and tiny holes at the bottom of the bag so air has to filter upward through the cotton balls before being breathed in. It’s definitely the most air-tight solution he’s come up with, and it’s stylish to boot (in an apocalyptic way).
Loren Grush, Senior Science Reporter
For the last week, my husband and I have been wrapping our faces in these face-covering infinity scarves that his parents got us for Christmas. At the time, I wasn’t sure exactly when I’d ever wear the one I got. Now, it’s one of my most prized possessions. We truly look like we’re about to rob a bank while wearing them, so it was a really surreal moment when we passed by two police officers the other day on our way home from the pharmacy. They were also wearing masks. We waved at one another.
But now I think that I may be the most spoiled here, as my mother-in-law is an expert sewer and made us our own customized denim masks, which we just got in the mail yesterday. She actually asked me for my measurements, specifically the length from my nose to my chin. (What can I say? I married into the right family.)
She used this pattern, meant to be worn by health care workers over their N95 masks. We don’t have any N95 masks (because we are definitely not health care workers), but we do have some cheap medical masks that my husband bought before we left for our honeymoon, just before the US started sheltering in place. So we’ll now be sporting two layers of material on our trips to the grocery store or our quick walks around the block with our dog. I like that our outer layer mask is made out of denim; we must keep the hipster spirit alive here in New York City.
Sarah Smithers, Senior Editorial Coordinator
I am both a terrible and impatient seamstress. The last time I tried to sew something, I made three unsuccessful attempts at threading the needle before I had to ragequit. So my first solution for a DIY mask was to simply tie a handkerchief around my face. It was okay for the first 10 seconds of my morning dog walk… and then it started to slide down. The fabric felt itchy, my breath was hot against my face, and I kept getting my hair caught whenever I attempted to tighten the knot in the back. As the dogs dragged me around the block, I tried to keep calm as I thought, “I can barely breathe in this dumb thing” and “Don’t touch your face, don’t touch your face, don’t touch your face.”
Thankfully, my fiancé also hated the handkerchief, and he is infinitely more patient than I am.
His fix was to follow the CDC’s quick cut T-shirt covering guide and add a few tweaks. He cut a few extra swaths of fabric from the shirts and stitched them to the inside of the mask to create a little pocket. He also cut up a clean HEPA air conditioner filter, flattened it under some heavy books, and slid that into the pocket.
This fix is way more comfortable and the addition of the filter makes me feel slightly less anxious about venturing outdoors. Now that I am basically living in sweats and pajamas, this is the only “accessory” I’ve added to my outfit in ages. I’ve already started digging through my drawers to find more shirts to sacrifice. While my current mask is a classic black that goes with everything, I would love to get some more colors into the mix. Maybe a nice floral for spring? Ideally, I would have a different color or patterned mask for each day of the week. Maybe then I could remember what day it actually is.
The Canadian government says it will donate up to 200,000 vaccine doses to fight the mpox outbreak in Congo and other African countries.
It says the donated doses of Imvamune will come from Canada’s existing supply and will not affect the country’s preparedness for mpox cases in this country.
Minister of Health Mark Holland says the donation “will help to protect those in the most affected regions of Africa and will help prevent further spread of the virus.”
Dr. Madhukar Pai, Canada research chair in epidemiology and global health, says although the donation is welcome, it is a very small portion of the estimated 10 million vaccine doses needed to control the outbreak.
Vaccine donations from wealthier countries have only recently started arriving in Africa, almost a month after the World Health Organization declared the mpox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
A few days after the declaration in August, Global Affairs Canada announced a contribution of $1 million for mpox surveillance, diagnostic tools, research and community awareness in Africa.
On Thursday, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said mpox is still on the rise and that testing rates are “insufficient” across the continent.
Jason Kindrachuk, Canada research chair in emerging viruses at the University of Manitoba, said donating vaccines, in addition to supporting surveillance and diagnostic tests, is “massively important.”
But Kindrachuk, who has worked on the ground in Congo during the epidemic, also said that the international response to the mpox outbreak is “better late than never (but) better never late.”
“It would have been fantastic for us globally to not be in this position by having provided doses a much, much longer time prior than when we are,” he said, noting that the outbreak of clade I mpox in Congo started in early 2023.
Clade II mpox, endemic in regions of West Africa, came to the world’s attention even earlier — in 2022 — as that strain of virus spread to other countries, including Canada.
Two doses are recommended for mpox vaccination, so the donation may only benefit 100,000 people, Pai said.
Pai questioned whether Canada is contributing enough, as the federal government hasn’t said what percentage of its mpox vaccine stockpile it is donating.
“Small donations are simply not going to help end this crisis. We need to show greater solidarity and support,” he said in an email.
“That is the biggest lesson from the COVID-19 pandemic — our collective safety is tied with that of other nations.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
HALIFAX – The Nova Scotia government says it could be months before it reveals how many people are on the wait-list for a family doctor.
The head of the province’s health authority told reporters Wednesday that the government won’t release updated data until the 160,000 people who were on the wait-list in June are contacted to verify whether they still need primary care.
Karen Oldfield said Nova Scotia Health is working on validating the primary care wait-list data before posting new numbers, and that work may take a matter of months. The most recent public wait-list figures are from June 1, when 160,234 people, or about 16 per cent of the population, were on it.
“It’s going to take time to make 160,000 calls,” Oldfield said. “We are not talking weeks, we are talking months.”
The interim CEO and president of Nova Scotia Health said people on the list are being asked where they live, whether they still need a family doctor, and to give an update on their health.
A spokesperson with the province’s Health Department says the government and its health authority are “working hard” to turn the wait-list registry into a useful tool, adding that the data will be shared once it is validated.
Nova Scotia’s NDP are calling on Premier Tim Houston to immediately release statistics on how many people are looking for a family doctor. On Tuesday, the NDP introduced a bill that would require the health minister to make the number public every month.
“It is unacceptable for the list to be more than three months out of date,” NDP Leader Claudia Chender said Tuesday.
Chender said releasing this data regularly is vital so Nova Scotians can track the government’s progress on its main 2021 campaign promise: fixing health care.
The number of people in need of a family doctor has more than doubled between the 2021 summer election campaign and June 2024. Since September 2021 about 300 doctors have been added to the provincial health system, the Health Department said.
“We’ll know if Tim Houston is keeping his 2021 election promise to fix health care when Nova Scotians are attached to primary care,” Chender said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Newfoundland and Labrador‘s chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.
Dr. Janice Fitzgerald says that so far this year, the province has recorded 230 confirmed cases of the vaccine-preventable respiratory tract infection, also known as pertussis.
Late last month, Quebec reported more than 11,000 cases during the same time period, while Ontario counted 470 cases, well above the five-year average of 98. In Quebec, the majority of patients are between the ages of 10 and 14.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick has declared a whooping cough outbreak across the province. A total of 141 cases were reported by last month, exceeding the five-year average of 34.
The disease can lead to severe complications among vulnerable populations including infants, who are at the highest risk of suffering from complications like pneumonia and seizures. Symptoms may start with a runny nose, mild fever and cough, then progress to severe coughing accompanied by a distinctive “whooping” sound during inhalation.
“The public, especially pregnant people and those in close contact with infants, are encouraged to be aware of symptoms related to pertussis and to ensure vaccinations are up to date,” Newfoundland and Labrador’s Health Department said in a statement.
Whooping cough can be treated with antibiotics, but vaccination is the most effective way to control the spread of the disease. As a result, the province has expanded immunization efforts this school year. While booster doses are already offered in Grade 9, the vaccine is now being offered to Grade 8 students as well.
Public health officials say whooping cough is a cyclical disease that increases every two to five or six years.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick’s acting chief medical officer of health expects the current case count to get worse before tapering off.
A rise in whooping cough cases has also been reported in the United States and elsewhere. The Pan American Health Organization issued an alert in July encouraging countries to ramp up their surveillance and vaccination coverage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2024.
