Coronavirus: Peterborough hospital trust ‘overwhelmed’ and ‘humbled’ by kindness and PPE equipment during pandemic

Community groups such as the Scouts, Guides, Friends of Peterborough Hospital, The WI and the national Facebook group called ‘For The Love of Scrubs’ and many others have donated resources such as scrubs, hats, caps, laundry bags and ear savers to provide the much needed extra equipment.

Items donated include:

• Scrubs – tops and bottoms – 400 sets - labelled and laundered ready to distribute

• Scrub hats and caps - 478

• Laundry bags - 1,218

• Ear savers (plastic/3D printed) – 1,183

• Ear savers (knitted or fabric) – 190

• Messenger bags - 294

• Headbands – 92

Local schools have used their textiles rooms to cut fabric and sew items together and acted as delivery hubs for large amounts of fabric utilising collections by volunteers.

Aragon Direct Services, the waste removal company run by Peterborough City Council, has been coordinating “The Scrub Bus” to transport donations.

Kate Martin, trust soft FM monitoring officer, said: “We have been overwhelmed by the feeling of community spirit and support. We are so incredibly grateful to the individuals, groups and companies who have diverted their energy, time and resources into supporting our hospitals and staff.

Eric Fehily, estates and facilities director, added: “These are unprecedented and uncertain times for us all but the enormous outpouring of generosity and kindness that we have experienced in recent weeks is truly exceptional.

“We are proud to support, and in turn be supported by, our local communities and we are sincerely thankful for every kindness that has been shown to us.

“However, as we approach recovery stage we don’t need any additional donations but would like to say a massive thank you and express how grateful for the extraordinary response from staff and members of the public.”