Times of need are when a community’s character, and the best of the community’s people, often shine through.
Officials at Northern Regional Hospital say that’s certainly been the case in recent weeks, with an outpouring of support and help from area residents to help the hospital, and its staff, meeting any challenges which might arise during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Surry County has been fortunate thus far, with just 10 cases reported in the county as of Wednesday — with no new ones for more than a week — and no deaths.
Still, the hospital staff has had to ready itself for the worst-possible outcome, which has meant moving patient triage to a tent outside, restricting visitors and vendors from the hospital, and isolating staff from possible contamination in every way practical.
And the hospital has had to be judicious in the use of personal protective equipment, such as masks, face shields, gowns, and other items while attempting to stockpile as much of the equipment as possible in a world where those supplies seem to be ever-dwindling.
“As we meet the challenges and continue to push forward in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, I am unabashedly proud of the heroic efforts and tireless energy of our physicians and staff to maintain our operations so we may continue to deliver uninterrupted quality care to patients,” said Chris A. Lumsden, president and chief executive officer of Northern Regional Hospital.
He was equally effusive in his praise for others in the community, who have rallied around the hospital and its staff.
“I am equally astounded and grateful for the overwhelming level of support we have received from the communities we serve,” he said.
Widespread support
That support has come in many forms: a steady flow of donated food, supplies and equipment from a potpourri of individuals and groups (including patients and former patients, family members and friends); churches and other faith-based groups; local restaurants and fast-food chains; retail and building-supply stores; and many others — all of whom are working to help ensure that healthcare professionals have what they need.
“It’s been a remarkable outpouring of love from the community to the healthcare workers,” echoes Kitty Horton, the hospital’s manager of Infection Control. “We are seeing a high degree of ingenuity and creativity among community members – especially in relation to designing and making surgical masks and protective aerosol boxes to supplement our existing supply of those essential items.”
The hand-made surgical masks include a plastic shield to cover the full faces of physicians and other healthcare workers; and the plastic-framed, protective aerosol boxes are used with patients who have breathing difficulties. “The aerosol boxes – which are being built by maintenance staff and several church volunteers – are positioned over the head and shoulders of patients in order to protect clinicians from airborne particles when those patients require nebulizer treatments (usually for asthma) or need to be intubated,” Horton said. “Our Emergency Department physicians have tested and assessed them; and given us a green light to use them if needed to supplement our existing supply.
“We are looking at every way we can to optimize our use of personal protective equipment, and our friends and neighbors within the community are helping us meet that challenge,” she added.
In addition to receiving surplus or hand-made PPE devices, there has been no shortage of food and treats delivered to the hospital’s staff.
“We have received an abundance of prepared meals and goodies for our staff from just about every restaurant and grocery store in town,” said Ashly Lancaster, director of marketing. “The donated food has run the gamut from savory dinner meals to hearty lunch sandwiches to Tootsie Roll Pops.” Several individuals have also donated tablets and other electronic devices to assist with ongoing communications between inpatients and Skilled Nursing residents and their families.
Quilters Take Center Stage
Northern Hospital, along with other area health facilities and charitable shelters, has been the beneficiary of hundreds of cloth face masks that have been designed and sewn by members of multiple quilting clubs and guilds.
Leading the sewing brigade of the Sky View Missionary Baptist Church, in Fancy Gap, Virginia, is 75-year-old Barbara Amos, who worries that she and her quilting group colleagues “just can’t sew fast enough.”
“Everybody has come together at our church to either sew, donate or buy supplies, or make deliveries,” she said. Amos said that she and her quilting buddies patched together several prototypes until they had fashioned the perfect one – which includes the right type and amount of outer cloth, a thin and breathable inner lining, a strategically placed pipe cleaner (so it can bend to the shape of each wearer’s nose); and an elastic band.
“We are just so blessed to have the know-how to be able to do this,” she said.
Another group, the Foothills Quilters Guild, is also busy sewing face masks and sharing them with hospitals, nursing homes, and community residents.
“Our group includes chapters in multiple counties, and we all want to help out in our hometowns,” said Mount Airy resident Barb Steffy, who said she’s been sewing all her life – “since I was 10 or 11.” A retired nurse, Steffy explained that her goal is to “help preserve the PPEs for the professionals in the hospitals and also help the nurses in the hospital extend the life of their N95 masks.”
To date, Steffy has made and donated nearly 100 masks, and she’s far from done. To enhance her own efficiency, she admits to recruiting her husband, John, a former medic. “I tried to sit him at the sewing machine, but then quickly re-assigned him to cutting elastic and making deliveries,” she said with a laugh.
“The ongoing pandemic, unprecedented in our lifetime, will undoubtedly continue to present challenges that strain our hospital’s resources and test our professional resolve; but, with the unwavering support of each other and our community, we remain united in our mission to provide high-quality care in a compassionate, healing environment,” Lumsden said.
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Source: https://www.mtairynews.com
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