Protective Ebola suits in high demand

MUNDELEIN, Ill. -- An Illinois company is working side by side with many health care facilities to create protective wear for medical workers.

Medline, a Mundelein-based company, is in high demand right now. They are making life-saving protective gear to make sure people are protected from the Ebola threat.

"On average we are taking anywhere from 150 calls a day, what different types of masks do you have?" said Stephanie Pasko Nelson, vice president of marketing at Medline.

Nelson says hospitals are buying in bulk and putting together kits to be used at a moment's notice. The kits include impervious gowns, impenetrable boot covers, fluid resistant masks, goggles and face shields. Also included are head gear and two pairs of exam gloves for extra protection.

"As an option, if the customer is looking for more body protection than just a gown, we do have full-body coveralls with elastic wrists and elastic ankles," said Nelson.

The company's distribution center in Libertyville is busy filling orders and loading pallets containing fluid resistant protective gear into trucks for shipment to local hospitals and health care facilities.

Medline officials stess that caregivers follow the Centers for Disease Control protocol measures for wearing and removing the protective gear.

"All hospitals have a protocol they have to follow," said Barbara Connell, vice president of clinical services at Medline. "Your personal protective equipment is donned outside of the room and when you come out, treat anything as being contaminated. And the biggest thing is your t-zone - eyes ,nose, mouth- and you don't want anything coming in contact with those areas."

Connell says at this point the Centers for Disease Control is not recommending that consumers purchase protective gear. She added that the CDC is constantly updating their safety procedures.