CMS Public Newsletter

How you can help – Face Masks

How to Make a Face Mask

Thank you for donating your skills and your time to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health! Due to COVID-19 one of our greatest needs is to increase our supply of Personal Protective Equipment (“PPE”). According to the CDC, volunteers can help increase our supply of PPE by making fabric face masks, which are usable in a crisis response when necessary.

Read First: Infection Prevention

Please answer these questions for yourself:

  1. EXPOSURE: “Have you been in contact with anyone suspected or confirmed to have COVID-19 in the past 14 days?” 
  1. SYMPTOMS: “Do you have fever, cough, or shortness of breath?”

If “no” to EXPOSURE and SYMPTOMS, then proceed with making masks. 

If “yes” to EXPOSURE and/or “yes” to SYMPTOMS, please do not make any masks. If you are experiencing cough, fever or shortness of breath and have concern that this might be COVID-19, please call your primary care provider for a risk assessment. If you do not have a primary care provider, please call the state at: NH: 2-1-1, VT: 802-863-7240.

Practice good hand hygiene when making your masks! Wash your hands whenever you start and end a sewing session. In addition, we will wash all masks when they arrive at our facility.

Guidelines for Making Face Masks

Materials:

100% unused cotton fabric (front) – no metallic fabrics

100% cotton or cotton flannel (back)

¼” or 3/8” flat elastic

You may provide your own fabric or pick up a kit with all needed materials (except thread) from us. Please see: “Connect with Us” below.

How to Make a Face Mask

A video and instructions for making the masks can be found at this website (thank you to the Turban Project and Deaconess Health System). We strongly recommend watching the very helpful video from Deaconess. For your convenience, we’ve listed the instructions here as well.

(Note: the instructions list two sizes, Adult and Child. We would recommend making adult-sized masks primarily. If possible, making a few larger Adult masks would be helpful as well, simply by adding an inch to the cut fabric.)

  1. Put right sides of cotton fabric together. Cut 9 x 6 (Adult) or 7.5 x 5 (Child) or 10 x 7 (Lg. Adult).
  2. Starting at the center of bottom (long) edge, sew to the first corner, stop. Sew the elastic into the corner. A few stitches forward and back will hold this.
  3. Sew to the next corner, stop, and bring the other end of that same elastic to the corner and sew a few stitches forward and back.
  4. Now sew across that top of the mask to the next corner. Again put an elastic in the corner.
  5. Sew to the next corner and sew in the other end of the same elastic.
  6. Sew across the bottom leaving about 1.5” to 2” open. Stop, cut the thread. Turn inside out.
  7. Pin 3 tucks on each side of the mask. Make sure the tucks are in the same direction.
  8. Sew around the edge of the mask twice. 

Connect with Us

Once your masks are made, you may drop them off in bulk in resealable plastic bags at our donation center located at the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Service Center, Green Warehouse, 50 LaBombard Road North, Lebanon, NH. Drop-off items will be accepted 7:00am to 3:30pm, Monday through Friday, and 9:00am to 2:30pm, Saturday and Sunday.

If you would like a kit, please call ahead for availability to the donation center hotline at 603-650-4217. This number is open M-F 7 AM to 3:30 PM.

Thank you again for your generosity. If you have any questions, please contact Kristin Roth at [email protected].