The purpose of decontaminating N95 masks is to ensure that a safe supply of
personal protective equipment, or PPE, is always immediately available.
There are three main parts of the decontamination process for N95 masks:
Safe and effective mask collection;
ensuring integrity of the N95 mask throughout the entire process;
and, reducing contamination risks.
This is the correct collection method.
Used N95 masks are placed in individual paper bags before being placed
in a collection bin on your unit.
This will help to enhance safety by reducing the risk of cross-contamination
and ensure masks stay in good condition.
Make sure you prepare your open paper bag by placing it on a flat surface or
clipping it to a door frame before beginning the PPE donning sequence.
Preserving the integrity of the N95 mask.
Perform hand hygiene before and after handling the N95 mask.
When doffing your N95 mask, do a quick check for:
soiling from makeup, creams or bodily fluids;
broken straps;
missing or damaged nose clips; or,
other visible damage.
If any of these are present, the mask will not be accepted and should be discarded.
If the mask is clean and intact, carefully place it in the paper bag.
Place the bagged mask into the labelled collection bin.
Ensure that no waste is placed in the N95 collection bin.
Bins are labelled with the unit name and date before being
transported to storage or for decontamination.
Here is a quick summary of life of an N95 mask during the decontamination process.
After N95 masks are delivered to the decontamination lab, they are sorted and inspected for:
Visible soil; Strap and band integrity; Rips, tears or holes;
Damaged, loose, or missing nose clips; and, The number of times it’s been decontaminated.
Between each batch, the workstation and all high-touch surfaces are cleaned
using hospital-grade disinfectant.
Each mask receives a thorough inspection using a magnifying glass
to ensure that masks meet the decontamination criteria.
Masks that pass this inspection are placed in a clean bin and sent to be decontaminated.
Masks that fail to meet this criteria are documented and discarded.
Next, the bin of inspected masks is prepared for decontamination.
After straps are marked, the mask is gently reshaped and placed in the loading basket.
Now, the mask is ready to be decontaminated.
Baskets of masks are placed into a machine where they are treated with a combination of:
vaporized hydrogen peroxide; ultraviolet light; and, ozone gas.
This process destroys pathogens and viruses on mask surfaces
when mixed together at a specific temperature.
After decontamination, the baskets of masks are transferred from
the machine to a wire cart to dry for 15 minutes.
When dry, the mask goes through a quality check to ensure its integrity.
After this final inspection, each mask is packaged in a paper bag labelled with:
mask type; quality check; technician initials; cleaning method;
exposure time; load number; and, processing date.
Each batch of decontaminated N95 masks are transferred to a clean bin and labelled.
These masks will be carefully stored should we need to access them.
This process is based on the best available evidence that
aligns with Health Canada and Ontario Health recommendations.
It has also been reviewed by Occupational Health and Safety, and IPAC, at THP.
Visit the PPE section on the THP Hub for more information.