Concerned about PPE supply, Lorain County funeral directors look to each other

GRAFTON — The president of the Lorain County Funeral Directors Association said he believes he has enough personal protective equipment to last his own funeral home through the coronavirus outbreak, but he is looking to work with other local funeral directors to ensure everyone's stock remains sufficient. "If some of the guys need something, we are just going to have to work together," said Charlie Duke, the co-owner of Duke Funeral Home in Grafton and leader of the association. He is making phone calls to get a better idea of what PPE is in stock at many of the Lorain County funeral homes, so in the case that one runs out of a particular item, another would be able to offer some of their stock of that item. It is nearly impossible to find certain items on the market right now, Duke said, and some funeral directors are telling him their supply of hard-to-find items is running low. He recently reached out to the office of U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Urbana, to see if he could get any assistance for Lorain County funeral homes, and he anticipates a response in the next few days. Jordan's district includes parts of the county. "We are on the front lines, too, and a lot of times the funeral homes get left behind," Duke said. The typical PPE that funeral directors wear during the embalming process is extensive. Duke said it can include a waterproof disposable gown, a hair net, shoe covers, a mask or respirator, a face shield and gloves. Some embalmers might consider wearing two pairs of gloves for safety concerns, he said. Washable gowns were sometimes worn in the past, but Duke said he would only use disposable items for safety purposes during the pandemic. The scarcity of PPE is a concern for Vince Giovannazzo, owner, funeral director and embalmer of Reidy-Scanlan-Giovannazzo Funeral Home in Lorain. He estimated he has enough PPE to last six to nine months, but acknowledged that the results would not be good if he ran out or had to share the inventory. "That's my fear. Give up what I have and I'm out of business," he said. "That's scary to think about." Still, Giovannazzo said he hopes PPE suppliers will give discretion to larger funeral homes or those who need the equipment most when selling their limited supply. "If we can share, obviously there are going to be some funeral homes that serve more of the community than others," he said. "They need to have more on hand because they're serving more." Gov. Mike DeWine's stay at home order does not prohibit funerals, but the order to not gather more than 10 people is being adopted by both funeral directors and cemeteries across the state as they plan services. Families who come to Duke Funeral home are limited to 10 people in a service, but Duke is encouraging them to wait until it is safer to gather and opt for a graveside service. Giovannazzo said it has been difficult to limit funerals to just 10 people, especially when families have numerous grandchildren, but the limit has resulted in "some very beautiful funerals, because they were so private, so intimate, too." Tom Laubenthal of Laubenthal-Mercado Funeral Home in Elyria has also seen the other side of limited funerals, when families are forced to tell some relatives they cannot attend due to the 10-person limit. "How do you decide who comes and who doesn't?" he said. In recent weeks, Laubenthal has seen many families opting to skip visitation and plan a celebration of life after the coronavirus outbreak calms and gatherings are permitted. At many cemetery burials now, the 10 attendees honor their loved one and immediately have to leave for home. "You're grieving and you're isolated," he said. "I don't think, psychologically, that is really healthy for people. But unfortunately, it is the reality we are living in right now." One thing Duke, Giovannazzo and Laubenthal all agreed on is that their own safety is an important factor not to be overlooked. A letter sent March 31 by the Ohio Funeral Directors Association advised extra precautions when working with decedent bodies to protect health care and funeral home employees from the spread of the virus. The association advises additional disinfecting practices when transporting a respiratory infection victim into the care of a funeral home, and further asks that a limited number of health care personnel accompany funeral staff as they move a body to their vehicle for transport to their facility. "If we funeral directors get sick, then what?" Laubenthal asked. "We have to be very vigilant. If something happened to us, who is going to take care of things? We are kind of on the front lines, so to speak." Contact Dylan Reynolds at (440) 329-7123 or dreynolds@chroniclet.com. Follow him on Twitter @drey1357.