A register nurse has died after treating a COVID-19 patient at Research Medical Center with minimal personal protective equipment, coworkers say.
For weeks, hospital workers in the Kansas City area caring for COVID-19 patients have been raising concerns about a lack of adequate supplies of personal protective equipment, such as masks, gowns, and face shields. One of them was registered nurse Celia Yap Banago, who worked at Research Medical Center for over 40 years.
HCA Midwest Health operates multiple hospitals in the Kansas City area, including Research Medical Center. In response to these concerns, HCA claimed it had “adequate supplies of PPE,” but also confirmed that it was “conserving equipment to prevent shortages.”
In late March, Banago treated a patient who was later found to have COVID-19. Banago had been provided no N95 mask or any other specialized PPE. She contracted the virus.
On March 30, HCA began requiring masks in patient areas, including specialized N95 masks when treating COVID-19 patients. The new requirement came too late for Banago, unfortunately. She died on April 22, the week before she was scheduled to retire.