KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A new safety tool is available to front-line healthcare workers thanks to a request by one nurse.
For Emily Wallace, COVID-19 can be overwhelming.
"It's just scary because it's something that you can't see, you can't put your finger on it and it's unlike anything most of us, if not all of us, have ever seen before," she said.
The certified registered nurse anesthetist works in close proximity to patients and staff all day.
One of her roles is intubating patients.
"It's placing an airway in through your vocal chords to ventilate you during an operation with the use of a ventilator," she said.
Wallace hasn't had to do this to any COVID-19 patients yet, but now has an extra tool to keep her safe in the process.
She'll be able to use a donated, specially made intubation box.
"It's a plastic or acrylic box that sits over the patient's head or neck with two ports in the middle so you can put your hands in and then intubate the patient that way," said Wallace.
Wallace saw other medical professionals using these boxes across the country.
She reached out to some of her neighbors, who worked with Knoxville company Baird & Wilson Sheet Metal to make boxes locally.
They quickly made 50 boxes and donated them to Wallace's hospital, as well as several others in the East Tennessee area.
Company president Kelly Wilson said it was an easy decision to say yes to this request. Wilson said they wanted to give back to the community and this was a great way to do so.
"He really did a great job and the boxes are easily cleaned, they come apart, like things I wouldn't have even considered," said Wallace. "He went above and beyond and made them super useful for us."
Wallace doesn't know if they'll keep using the boxes after the pandemic, but she knows COVID-19 isn't going away anytime soon.
"It's a scary time to be a healthcare worker and I never have felt that way before, so we appreciate these boxes as one more way to feel safe," she said.