COVID-19 is having a profound impact on medical supplies across the country with many necessities becoming very limited. Face masks appear to be one of the supplies hit hardest.
North Canyon Medical Center located in Gooding took to Facebook in order to reach out to its community and ask for face mask donations.
The response from the public has been very good according to Shelly Amundson, Community Relations Director. Amundson expressed her thanks by stating “More than anything it’s just our gratitude to our community for stepping up when we needed them and we’re really, really moved.”
While donations have been made, there is work still to be done as the medical center is hoping for five hundred masks donated within this week. It is requested that those making cloth masks should have the front and back side different colors.
These health care workers will be using these masks everyday and it is important to know which side of the mask is the inside and the outside to reduce spreading germs. It is important to note that the primary purpose of these masks to protect you from spreading the disease, not from getting it.
Amundson stated "“By me wearing a mask of some sort it is creating a barrier. So when I'm coughing or sneezing, I’m not exposing other people to those germs.”
The face masks are not the only thing being donated as well, the local school and library in Gooding has utilized 3-D printing to help with other needed materials. Straps that connect the face masks were donated to make it more comfortable for staff, who will wear them all day.
Also 3-D printed, were the plastic bands for face shields. North Canyon Medical Center will then use lamination sheets as temporary shields while they wait for more face masks.
North Canyon Medical Center shared that in the event they receive a surplus of masks, they will be donated to other facilities where they are needed.
