The Disaster Available Supplies in Hospitals (DASH) Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Module is intended to help hospitals plan for supplemental PPE needs of personnel providing acute care to patients with confirmed or suspected special pathogen infection or during pandemics. Approximate minimum PPE needs are based on the type of pathogen and a number of facility-specific variables. PPE calculators are included for viral hemorrhagic fever (VHF) (e.g., Ebola Virus Disease [EVD]), special respiratory illnesses (e.g., Middle East Respiratory Syndrome [MERS], Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome [SARS]), and pandemic viral pathogens. The DASH PPE Module does not provide information for less virulent pathogens or for non-infectious agents. It does not account for routine PPE usage (e.g., sterile gloves may occasionally be needed and should be part of normal hospital stock). The module does not include hand hygiene, disinfection, decontamination, and other related infection prevention supplies.
The DASH PPE Module is not proscriptive nor definitive. It is intended as a starting point for facility planners to estimate the minimum PPE that may be needed based upon the role the hospital has in the community and adjusts for the number and types of personnel involved in patient management, number of room entries, duration of hospital stay or outbreak, and the types of PPE commonly used by the facility. The DASH PPE Module is meant to be considered in conjunction with other planning tools, resources, information, and facility and community-wide preparedness efforts. It is not intended as a clinical tool and should be used for pre-incident planning and NOT during an outbreak.
For detailed information on the purpose of the DASH PPE Module, related planning considerations, and additional resources, click on the “PPE Methodology (PDF)” button. For detailed instructions, click on the “PPE Instructions (PDF)” button. Most users will find it helpful to have the PPE Instructions open in a separate browser window to follow along as they navigate through the module.
PPE Instructions (PDF) PPE Methodology (PDF)NOTE: User inputs cannot be saved in the DASH tool. Please remember to download or share as described in the Instructions frequently to save your inputs as you work in DASH.
Begin by selecting your pathogen of interest on the Index page below. You will then answer questions about your hospital's characteristics. Once your outputs are displayed, you can return to the Index page to select a different pathogen.
For assistance using the DASH Tool, please contact askasprtracie@hhs.gov or 1-844-5-TRACIE.