When outbreaks of infectious disease occur, we rely on healthcare professionals to care for those affected, putting themselves at increased risk of exposure to the pathogen causing the disease. While engineering and administrative controls should be the first considerations to protect these workers from this exposure, facilities should also ensure that at-risk employees are prepared to use respiratory protection, among other personal protective equipment, should the need arise. To aid healthcare facilities experiencing shortages of N95 respirators due to high demand across the nation, CDC developed the Strategies for Optimizing the Supply of N95 Respirators in Healthcare Settings which provides
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