April 2020 Archive

TTUHSC Team Successfully Produces Viral Transport Media for COVID-19 Testing

By Meaghan Collier
April 08, 2020

A challenge for the medical professionals across the country battling COVID-19 has been readily available testing components. In Amarillo, in particular, physicians faced a lack of commercially available viral transport media (VTM) testing vials.

TTUHSC Team Decontaminates PPE to Solve Shortages

By Mark Hendricks
April 06, 2020

One suggested way to reduce the stress COVID-19 has placed on the PPE supply chain is to extend the lifetime of existing equipment. With that in mind, a team from TTUHSC has been studying a method that can decontaminate used PPE, especially N95 masks and face shields.

Adherence to Mitigation Strategies Crucial as Manufacturers Struggle to Keep Up

By Kate Gollahon
April 02, 2020

While COVID-19 has caught America off-guard in many ways, one of the most significant is our nation-wide shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE)—something that is already affecting West Texas.

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Texas Tech University Join Forces to Develop 3D-Printed Face Masks, Shields to Fight COVID-19

By Glenys Young
April 01, 2020

A collaborative group of faculty from Texas Tech University and the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) are joining forces to create 3D-printed face shields and face masks for health care workers in hopes of fighting the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19).

The Importance of Staying Connected

By Kate Gollahon
April 01, 2020

While communities are learning to navigate the new, strange structure of isolation and social distancing, many individuals are attempting to balance that with recovery from addiction.

Working, Schooling at Home Creates New Family Dynamics

By Mark Hendricks
April 01, 2020

The spread of COVID-19, the novel coronavirus that has spawned a global pandemic, also has transformed the dynamics in many households. Children, used to the more structured life of school, may be experiencing fear, anxiety and boredom. Parents, accustomed to dealing with work-related tasks from office buildings, warehouses, trucks or other job settings now must meet job responsibilities with homebound children in the adjoining room.