Double-masking reduces transmission

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Hello,

Today in healthcare news: The CDC outlines the benefits of double-masking, WHO experts recommend AstraZeneca's shot for all adults, and the pandemic's toll on travel nurses.

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The CDC tested single masks, double masks (surgical + cloth on top), and knotted and tucked masks.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

CDC: Double masks and tightly fitted single masks can reduce COVID-19 transmission by up to 96.4%

• Double masking has become a trend, but until now there hasn't been much evidence it works.
• A CDC study suggests popping a cloth mask over a surgical one can improve protection about 50%.
• There are plenty of other low-tech strategies that can improve the performance of your mask, too.

Read the full story from Hilary Brueck here>>

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82-year-old Brian Pinker receives the Oxford University/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine from nurse Sam Foster at the Churchill Hospital in Oxford as the NHS increases its vaccination programme with 530,000 doses of the newly approved jab available for rollout across the UK on January 4, 2021 in Oxford, England.

Steve Parsons - WPA Pool/Getty Images

WHO experts recommend giving AstraZeneca and Oxford University's coronavirus vaccine to people 18 and older, even in places where variants are spreading

• A World Health Organization expert panel recommended Wednesday the AstraZeneca-University of Oxford coronavirus vaccine can be given to over 18 year-olds.
• The vaccine is authorized for emergency use in the UK, the EU, and several other countries, but not the US.
• It's easier to transport and store than other existing coronavirus vaccines.

Read the full story from Dr. Catherine Schuster-Bruce here>>

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Nurse Cindy Kelbert, left, checks on a critically ill COVID-19 patient through a glass door as she is surrounded by other nurses at St. Jude Medical Center in Fullerton, Calif., Tuesday, July 7, 2020.

Jae C. Hong/AP Photo

The pandemic made travel nurses the frontline heroes fighting the virus, but the work has taken a heavy toll

• Travel nurses are in high demand in the US as COVID-19 cases surge and hospitals are overwhelmed.
• Unlike early waves of the outbreak, staffing agencies say demand goes beyond just a few hotspots.
• Nurses tell Insider they're burnt out and are unsure how long they can stay on the frontlines.

Read the full story from Sarah Al-Arshani here>>

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More stories we're reading:

• About 1 in 10 Americans have received at least one dose of coronavirus vaccine (Insider)
• A Maine hospital brought in anti-union consultants from out of state and vaccinated them (Huffington Post)
• Japan says it has to throw away millions of Pfizer COVID-19 shots because it doesn't have enough syringes to extract them (Insider)
• About 90 people were hospitalized for COVID-19 like symptoms in central China from October to December 2019  (The Wall Street Journal)

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- Lydia

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