Local schools and training providers create visors and donate PPE

Local schools and training providers have been busy creating visors and donating spare PPE equipment for frontline NHS staff.

Every secondary school in the borough has donated their goggles used in the science departments, whilst staff at Middleton Technology School and Cardinal Langley RC High School have been creating visors for medical staff.

The two Middleton schools have made hundreds of visors which have been delivered to the Middleton ambulance station, North Manchester General Hospital, Royal Oldham Hospital, Manchester Children’s Hospital, Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, and paramedics, residential homes, GP surgeries and local pharmacists.

 

 

Training provider Rochdale Training has donated PPE, which would usually be used by its engineering apprentices, to Springhill Hospice, which is looking for eye protection, masks, gowns and gloves for its staff.

Businesses across the North West have been urged to join in producing the protective equipment for the NHS and frontline workers by the CBI, which represents businesses across the UK.

The organisation is urging firms with the skills or expertise that could be harnessed to get involved, as well as those who have skills that could be useful for the fight, including the suppliers, lawyers, logistics and others needed to make this critical endeavour happen.

The government is looking at ‘all options’ to increase the manufacture of protective equipment like aprons, gowns, face masks and hand sanitisers, including the potential re-opening of furloughed factories as part of the collective national effort.

Currently, any clinician working in a hospital, primary care or community care setting within two-metres of a suspected or confirmed coronavirus COVID-19 patient should wear an apron, gloves, surgical mask and eye protection, based on the risk.

 

 

In the past few weeks, the NHS Supply Chain have delivered 397 million pieces of PPE equipment including, masks, surgical masks and other PPE equipment to NHS trusts and 58,000 healthcare settings including GPs, pharmacies and community providers, but more is critically needed.
Commenting, CBI Regional Director for the North West, Damian Waters said:

“Protecting NHS and social care staff on the frontline is vitally important. But it’s not just them, from people carrying out essential work in food manufacture or Post Offices and delivery drivers, key workers need protective gear and we are committed to helping to secure it for them. These people are the fifth emergency service in times like these. I believe that businesses and firms in region could play a key role and I’m calling on anyone who thinks they could play a part, even a small part, to sign up to the webinar and see if you can.

“We are in a battle and many businesses who can are stepping up to the plate.  We all can play our role and make a difference, and this is another way we can protect those who are going above and beyond in this crisis.

“It is absolutely right that frontline staff have the appropriate protective equipment so they are safe and can have the confidence they need to do their jobs.”

To coordinate this and make a collective action plan to respond, the CBI is convening a business call at 11:30am next Wednesday (15 April) which you can register for via the CBI website:

• www.cbi.org.uk/events/solving-the-ppe-challenge-bringing-business-together/