photo by: Associated Press

In this March 24, 2020, file photo stacks of medical supplies are housed at the Jacob Javits Center that will become a temporary hospital in response to the COVID-19 outbreak in New York. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)

The City of Lawrence says it has adequate face masks, gloves and other gear to protect its workers — from police officers to medics to garbage collectors — but that doesn’t mean the city is entirely unaffected by the nationwide supply shortages.

All city workers currently have an “adequate” two-week supply of such protective gear, known as personal protective equipment or PPE, and the community’s Unified Command system implemented to respond to the virus is coordinating those resources, according to information city spokesman Porter Arneill provided the Journal-World. But the Unified Command — which consists of the city, Douglas County, LMH Health and Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health — has had to contend with the national shortage of PPE, and what is considered adequate could change if Lawrence’s public health situation worsens.

Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health Business Systems Analyst Charlie Bryan, who is leading the Unified Command’s logistics operations, said a recently completed survey of the PPE available communitywide indicated supplies are generally adequate for the present health conditions.

“(After) our review of it, we feel generally pretty comfortable,” Bryan said. But he said there is competition for protective gear, and that the Unified Command doesn’t receive all of the supplies it requests.

Nationwide competition

As national media outlets have reported, the federal government has not taken a central role in securing PPE for states, which in some cases has resulted in states bidding against one another — or even against the federal government — for supplies.

Bryan said the national situation has affected the city’s ability to get protective gear.

“Unfortunately what’s happening is we are all competing, even the state when they’re trying to find things,” Bryan said. “It’s just not a very efficient system because everybody is trying to do the same thing.”

The Unified Command helps coordinate bulk purchasing for PPE communitywide based on surveys sent out to local agencies, and supply requests are sent to the Kansas Division of Emergency Management, which either approves or denies the request, according to Bryan. He said the Unified Command completed its first communitywide survey of PPE supplies this past week, which he said the command would now do on a weekly basis so that information can be provided to the state.

Though he is generally comfortable with the levels of PPE on hand, Bryan said there is a limited supply of surgical gowns, which are primarily needed for health care workers. He said current state supply levels indicate there are no gowns available, and if more gowns are not found by the end of next week, he said the local discussion may turn to different ways to find more gowns or sterilizing gowns for reuse.

Protective gear for city workers

Arneill said that protective gear for city workers is prioritized and distributed according to need. Various city workers are using PPE, including police, fire and medical workers, garbage collectors and other essential workers, according to the information Arneill provided the Journal-World.

For police, Arneill said the current stock of PPE is sufficient for current operating volume and it’s anticipated that it will be adequate for the next several weeks. He said the department has modified operating procedures and instituted safety measures such as social distancing to mitigate exposure risk and conserve current stock. Fire and medical workers have “well above” a two-week supply, he said.

For solid waste workers, Arneill said gloves and eye protection are standard issue and well stocked. The solid waste division has enough cloth masks for two weeks with more coming, and sanitizer is also in stock for disinfecting vehicle cabs. For essential workers still working at City Hall and the Parks and Recreation Department, there is a two-week supply of PPE, including masks, gloves, wipes and hand sanitizer.

Bus drivers are contracted through First Transit, but Arneill was able to provide information about PPE supplies for the transit system. He said that all drivers are currently wearing cloth masks and an order of N95 masks is expected to arrive this week. He said First Transit has about 7,000 gloves on hand after a large order recently arrived. The city has provided hand sanitizer, and new deliveries from a First Transit supplier began last week. There is an ample supply of disinfecting solution for the buses, and misting equipment and disinfecting wipes were also delivered last week to supplement on-hand supply.

What defines an adequate supply?

Representatives for both the Lawrence police union and the local fire and medical workers union say that they have the PPE they need to do their jobs under current conditions. So far, the city has only announced one city employee who has contracted the virus: a police officer who tested positive last month.

Lawrence Police Officers Association Chair Bill Bradford said in an email to the Journal-World that the city and the police department have handled the ever-changing environment of the coronavirus pandemic well.

“We think the City and Department are doing the best they can to obtain and distribute suggested PPE, but those items are hard to get right now,” Bradford said. “Obviously we are not the only agency in need of this type of equipment so the national shortage does and will have a continued effect.”

Seamus Albritton, president of the association of Lawrence Professional Firefighters, Local 1596, also said in an email to the Journal-World there is an appropriate amount of protective gear under the present conditions.

“As the situation is currently in Douglas County and Lawrence, we are under the impression that we have the appropriate amount of personal protective equipment to continue daily operations, however, that does not fully eliminate the risk our members and all health care workers are being asked to take on a daily basis,” Albritton said.

The number of Douglas County residents who have tested positive for COVID-19 is 43, local health officials announced Saturday. Of those 43, 26 cases are believed to have been contracted through travel, and eight cases originated from contact with someone who had previously been determined to have a positive case. In eight more cases, investigators determined the disease was contracted locally, but couldn’t identify the exact source of the disease. One more case is still under investigation for type of transmission.

Based on guidance from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Bryan said it was determined that a 14-day supply of protective gear is considered adequate. However, he noted that calculation is based on current conditions, and that there are some concerns that it does not account for a potential surge in cases.

“Our calculation is pretty rudimentary,” Bryan said. “It’s how much do you have, how much are you using every day, and that tells us how many days on hand you have. But if the utilization rate is escalating, then that calculation wouldn’t really be adequate.”

Bryan added that the goal overall is to make sure that the highest-priority groups have a 14-day supply on hand. He said if there ever is a shortage, the Unified Command would have to consider how to move resources around in the community to ensure the highest-priority groups, beginning with health care workers, had adequate supplies.