Coronavirus Kent: GPs sent 'out of date' protective masks after new labels stuck over batches sent to surgeries
12:16, 19 March 2020
updated: 13:06, 19 March 2020
GPs in the county have been sent surgical protection masks beyond their use by dates covered with stickers showing a new date.
Doctors on the frontline against coronavirus have been left fuming and say they are being put at risk by the items which may increase their risk of exposure to Covid-19 germs.
But the government insists the masks sent to surgeries are "safe to use" after undergoing stringent independent testing.
KentOnline understands batches originally supposed to be used by 2016 have been delivered to at least one surgery in the county over the weekend and early this week.
Other surgeries across the country – from Devon to Yorkshire, Berkshire and Newcastle – have also received the fluid-resistant protective masks.
When they arrived, staff noticed new stickers placed giving a use by date of June 2021 over the original expiry date.
The government says those sent out have been relabelled as part of the extension to their shelf-life and ensure they remain safe for clinicians.
But one GP in the county told KentOnline they and colleagues feel "left hung out to dry" by NHS chiefs.
"Fabric disintegrates and it doesn't offer the protection that it's designed for.
"You can use them but you have to make the person aware that the PPE [personal protection equipment] is not 100%. But it is better than consulting someone without.
"The products that pass these stringent tests are subject to relabelling with a new shelf-life"
"But it's just a question of whether it will work as well."
A spokesman for the Department of Health and Social Care said: "Every piece of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) supplied to GPs in England is safe to use and will effectively protect staff if used correctly.
“NHS Supply Chain and Public Health England have worked with manufacturers and independent testing houses to formally test certain products, to see if it is possible to extend their life via accelerated age testing.
“The products that pass these stringent tests are subject to relabelling with a new shelf-life as appropriate and can continue to be used. All that are not up to standard will be destroyed.”
NHS guidance issued to GPs who have been told to only not work if they are displaying symptoms and a lack of testing taking place has also been criticised.
"As healthcare workers the guidelines are so different," the GP added. "We're told to isolate for seven days and if you've not got a cough to come back to work.
"We're not being tested at all. I have a GP friend who has got a fever and cough and they're not being tested."
Doctors have now requested for NHS laptops to be sent by Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) to allow them to carry out work from home and isolate longer in accordance with the government's wider national advice issued by the Prime Minister on Monday.
