#14,822
Of all of the predictable impacts of the emergence and spread of a potential pandemic virus, the run on PPEs - Personal Protective Equipment - is easily at the top of the list. Our JIT (Just In Time) inventory system - while streamlined and efficient in normal times - tends to choke whenever an unexpected demand is placed upon it.
And over the past month, the global supply of hospital grade PPEs (N95 respirators, gowns, face shields, etc.) has been rapidly depleted by worried governments and their agencies, hospitals, health departments, panic buying by the public, and yes - even by profiteers who hope to sell their stock at greatly increased prices as the crisis rolls on.While less valuable for hospital infection control, surgical masks have flown off the shelves as well - particularly for use by the general public - so even they have become scarce, and far more expensive.
Yesterday, in Hong Kong Govt Scrambles To Acquire PPEs, we looked at the fragility of the PPE supply chain, and the problems Hong Kong (and others) are already having securing needed supplies. Today, the World Health Organization's daily briefing was largely focused on finding ways to ensure the supply of essential PPEs to healthcare workers during a time of scarcity.Dr. Tedros cited a 100-fold increase in demand, and a 20-fold increase in prices in recent days. While you'll want to watch the entire daily briefing, some of the WHO's tweet stream is posted below.
