Pictured: The personal protective equipment EVERY frontline NHS medic needs

Britain’s medics on the front line of the coronavirus pandemic have been calling on the government to provide adequate personal protective equipment.

Alarming scenes from the nation’s hospitals have revealed nurses wearing homemade gowns from bin bags and curtains amid claims of a dire shortage.

In one of the most harrowing cases, a doctor warned about a lack of such gear before later dying with the disease. 

Health Secretary Matt Hancock has insisted there is a sufficient stock of protective clothing, but that distributing it was proving a ‘Herculean logistical effort’.

The minister further urged NHS staff not to overuse its supply of gear, which they should treat as a ‘precious resource’.

The persistent calls for more personal protective equipment – or PPE – has been bumped up the agenda and is now a staple of the coronavirus phraseology.

Here, MailOnline breaks down the elements of PPE which medics are crying out for.

Eye protection

Eye protection is recommended to all healthcare workers operating in hospital inpatient and emergency departments with confirmed or suspected coronavirus patients.

The only exception is for medics providing inpatient care to people in the extremely vulnerable group undergoing shielding, who will swap their eye protection for a surgical mask.

Eye protection mainly comprises an eye shield, goggles or a visor. In most types of patient care, they can be worn for the entire shift if the medics judge it to be safe.

But Public Health England advises medics to change their eye protection each time they do an ‘aerosol generating procedure’ – where patients are susceptible to spreading infection.

Protective eyewear protects both NHS medics and patients from potentially harmful particles contaminating each other. 

Fluid-resistant surgical mask/respirator

Medics are strongly advised to cover their mouths with either a fluid-resistant surgical mask or a filtering face piece respirator.

Which piece of equipment they wear depends on the exposure to coronavirus patients.

Doctors and nurses performing an aerosol-generating procedure, or working ‘in a higher risk acute care area with possible or confirmed cases’ should strap on a filtering face piece (FFP) respirator.

Respiratory protection is worn over the nose and mouth to protect the wearer from inhaling hazardous substances, including airborne particles. 

Public Health England outlines two types of respiratory protection that can be used, a tight-fitting disposable respirators and loose-fitting hoods.

There are three categories of FFP respirator: FFP1, FFP2 and FFP3. FFP3 and loose fitting powered hoods provide the highest level of protection and are recommended when caring for patients in areas where aerosol-generating procedures are being performed. 

After such procedures, the respirator should be removed and thoroughly sterilised.

For all other types of care, medics are advised to use a fluid-resistant surgical mask. 

This is a disposable fluid-resistant mask worn over the nose and mouth to protect the mucous membranes of the wearer’s nose and mouth from splashes and infectious droplets.  

Disposable plastic apron/disposable fluid-resistant gown

In most cases, NHS medics will wear a plastic apron which will be thrown away after one use.

However a long-sleeved gown can be used at the discretion of the health workers and should be worn when performing aerosol-generating procedures.

Anecdotal evidence from hospitals suggests apron and gown supplies are running dry, as medics have been photographed wearing bin liners and curtains.

Disposable gloves

Gloves must be worn in every coronavirus hospital environment, except for those working in an inpatient area with possible or confirmed cases of who they are not coming within two metres.

These gloves should be thrown away after each use.  

Some medics also wear hair nets and disposable overshoes for added protection, but this is not listed by PHE.