I’ve been watching the seventh season of MAS*H on DVD lately, and I’ve noticed something interesting.
I noticed that in the OR, the men and women wear the surgical masks differently. The men wear the masks with the bottom two “straps” tied in back of their necks and the upper straps tied a bit above their occipital ridge.
The women, however, tie the lower strings of the mask over the top of their heads.
By the same token, I noticed on Grey’s Anatomy that this male/female difference WRT surgical masks does not apply.
Was (is?) this a common practice and is there some reason for this difference in the way the surgical masks were worn?
Zev Steinhardt
I know that some might feel that this belongs in CS, but there is a factual question here and it’s only related to MAS*H in that that’s where I saw it.
Its not a male female thing, just personal preference. I tie the lower strings high and the upper one lower. It keeps it from slipping off. I’ve seen older doctors tie the neck head way. The mask ends up folded over their nose, with big gaps on the sides.
The purpose is to shield you from the environment and visa versa. Gaps are bad. I prefer the roundedformed masksthat have elastic like a hallow’een mask.
Here is Everything you ever wanted to know about surgical masks.
picunurse, do you get to choose what kind of mask you wear? Does the hospital have a selection to choose from, or can you provide your own formed mask if all they stock is paper? Or is that sort of thing frowned upon in the interest of uniformity and lawsuit prevention?
Masks are disposable. They can only be used until it gets moist, which is variable from person to person. The rigid type usually last 1-2 hours, the soft type less, because the are closer to the nose and mouth. The truth is, they are more for peace of mind than any thing else. In surgery the surgeon rarely changes masks, even though a case may last several hours, and the mask lost all efficiency after one or two. They keep him from drooling into the wound, I guess. :dubious:
The cloth masks from M.A.S.H. haven’t been used since the '70s, as far as I know.
To answer your question, if the hospital doesn’t carry the formed type I have to suck it up and use what’s available.