This project was revived in 2020 by Stanford social scientist Cati Brown-Johnson and featured on The Rachel Maddow Show, NPR, Smithsonian magazine and KQED.

Regarding cultural sensitivity, Heffernan said that developing the project "involved close readings of Ebola survivors’ stories, in particular the first-person narratives of doctors who became infected and lived to write about it.

Their stories were electrifying, and the words they chose to describe their experience—of being sick, isolated, and the trauma of not seeing a human face in their caregivers—are seared in my mind.

[4] Heffernan told Maddow staff that she "had hoped the PPE portraits would become standard best medical practice for all kinds of patients who have to experience isolation of never seeing people outside of PPE—only masked faces for days at a time.

"[2] So your terrified patients who can't actually see really any of your face, at least have some idea of who you are and what you really look likeCati Brown-Johnson from Stanford University School of Medicine revived the project for the COVID-19 pandemic.

Brown-Johnson says the research behind this idea shows that "a warm and competent provider connects with the healing mechanisms within a person's own body.

[5] Smithsonian magazine states the feeling of seeing someone in full PPE is like "anonymizing these individuals as masked, expressionless staff members in space suits".

[1] Attaching photos to PPE is such a simple, low-tech tool—yet it can transform those precious moments of care at a time when patients are sick, scared, and feeling alone.

We were so glad to support Mary Beth Heffernan and her brilliant idea in her initial PPE Portrait Project work.

We urge all hospitals to adopt this practice, so that both patients and healthcare teams can benefit.Stanford Medicine's website suggests that in high-risk settings the photo will be discarded with the disposal of the gown.

Laminating, disinfecting and reusing was first discussed but there were concerns that the hard edge of the plastic might damage the PPE gown and become a source for contamination.