Health Interventions in Volcanic Eruptions
Community Wearability Assessment of Respiratory Protection against Volcanic Ash from Mt Sinabung, Indonesia
Abstract
Inhalation of ash can be of great concern for affected communities, during and after volcanic eruptions. Governmental and humanitarian agencies recommend and distribute a variety of respiratory protection (RP), commonly surgical masks but, also, industry-certified N95-style masks. However, there is currently no evidence on how wearable they are within affected populations or how protective wearers perceive them being against volcanic ash (which will influence the likelihood of uptake of recommended interventions). Volunteers living near Mt. Sinabung, Sumatra, Indonesia, participated in a field wearability study, which included a high-efficiency mask certified to industry standards (N95-equiv.); a standard, pleated surgical mask (Surgical); a Basic flat-fold mask (Flat-fold), and the surgical mask plus a scarf tied over the top (Surgical Plus) to improve fit.
This research was supported by the Research for Health in Humanitarian Crises (R2HC) Programme
Citation
Galea, K.S.; Covey, J.; Mutia Timur, S.; Horwell, C.J.; Nugroho, F.; Mueller, W. Short Communication: Health Interventions in Volcanic Eruptions—Community Wearability Assessment of Respiratory Protection against Volcanic Ash from Mt Sinabung, Indonesia. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15, 2359.