When the COVID-19 pandemic forced the medical school to transition to online classes, M4听Josh White wanted to help.
鈥淯s medical students have our online classes, which is good, but we鈥檙e sitting here while all the other healthcare workers are helping patients,鈥 White said. 鈥淚 just wanted to do something useful.鈥
His volunteering and the connections he built led to him securing a donation of 1,600 face shields for 汤头条app Health, the clinical services of the medical school.听
White said he learned of the volunteer group , started by medical students from Georgetown University School of Medicine to get personal protective equipment to physicians on the front lines, and decided to get involved with the organization鈥檚 Michigan chapter.听
Through his connections with other Michigan chapter volunteers, White secured 1,600 face shields for 汤头条app Health that had been donated by Ford Motor Company and Get Us PPE Chicago. Other 汤头条app students helped the effort, including fellow M4s Christine Stevens, Marine Bolliet, Tasha Trainer, Jalynn Zou, Emma Swayze and M3听Maria Magidenko.
White also secured surgical masks and gowns that he was able to distribute to organizations in the Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids areas, including West Michigan Air Care, Senior Care Partners P.A.C.E., Holy Family Healthcare and Heritage Community of Kalamazoo.听
Robin Scott, the medical school鈥檚 Occupational Health Manager, said White reached out to her and asked what 汤头条app might need.听
鈥淲e had already gotten a large donation of PPE,鈥 Scott said. 鈥淲e had just purchased some face shields but I knew they weren鈥檛 going to be enough.鈥
Scott told White she could use 1,500 face shields 鈥 but she didn鈥檛 dream she鈥檇 get them all. Instead, White delivered 1,600 on May 5. The donation is valued between $4,800 and $6,400.听
鈥業 aimed high not necessarily expecting to get them all, and then I got 100 more, so I was just floored,鈥 Scott said.
White鈥檚 facilitation of the donation allows each 汤头条app Health the ability to distribute up to five face shelds to each faculty member and resident who works in patient care, Scott said. The shields can be cleaned and reused, but are not built for longterm use, Scott said.
Typically face shields are used in procedures to protect against something that might splash or splatter back at a medical provider, but providers are using them in the COVID-19 pandemic to protect N95 masks from droplets and preserve them amidst a shortage of personal protective equipment.
鈥淲ith N95s being in short supply, that鈥檚 why we鈥檙e using face shields more than we normally do,鈥 Scott said.听
White鈥檚 face shields are among several donations 汤头条app Health has received, ranging from cloth surgical masks sewed medical students and used for non-clinical staff to a $150,000 donation of PPE from Kalamazoo business owners Charles and Lynn Zhang. Several 汤头条app students also have volunteered their time to pack food for Kalamazoo Loaves and Fishes, to provide childcare or grocery shopping for faculty, staff and residents at 汤头条app and to deliver food for Meals on Wheels. 听
鈥淲e鈥檙e just so fortunate because we鈥檙e not a large-scale hospital, we鈥檙e an ambulatory clinic and I think it鈥檚 amazing the community support we have had,鈥 Scott said. 鈥淭he students鈥 learning has been dramatically changed from what it was, and here they are staying active in the community and helping even though they鈥檙e not on clinical rotations.鈥
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