PPE Burn Rate Calculator – Are You Prepared?

Angie SzumlinskiAnnouncements, News

On a recent conference call with a group of providers, we discussed one of the challenges we continue to face during the pandemic, that of “being prepared”, having sufficient supplies of PPE and understanding the needs in our centers and predicting future utilization.

To assist in alleviating the fear of “running out” of PPE, the CDC has provided us with a “Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Burn Rate Calculator”. The burn rate calculator is a spreadsheet-based model that will help healthcare facilities plan and optimize the use of PPE in response to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-10). The burn rate calculator is not “new” but many providers are either not aware of it or haven’t familiarized themselves with the benefits of utilizing it. The process is really pretty simple and may be a great addition to your pandemic preparedness!

To use the calculator, enter the number of full boxes of each type of PPE in stock (gowns, gloves, surgical masks, respirators, and face shields, for example) and the total number of residents at your facility. Then the tool will do all the work and calculate the average consumption rate in your center, (also referred to as a “burn rate”) for each type of PPE entered in the spreadsheet. This information can then be used to estimate how long the remaining supply of PPE will last, based on the average consumption rate. Using the calculator can help facilities make order projections for future needs.

Interested in “being prepared” for what may be heading our way in the fall/winter? Remember, PPE is a critical piece of influenza preparedness as well! Do you want to avoid “stockpiling” tons of PPE that you may not need or worse, run out of PPE when it is needed? Click the link here, be prepared, let the experts help! As always, stay well, stay safe, and stay tuned!