Shielding America's Healthcare Workers
Donation protected
While the novel coronavirus endangers us all, healthcare workers are in eminent danger worsened by the scarcity of protective equipment. Elsewhere around the globe, these impacts are already being felt. We cannot afford to idly stand by and allow our healthcare workers to face this challenge unprotected.
Hospitals across the US are running dangerously low on personal protective equipment (PPE) for our frontline healthcare workers. If they fall sick, it will further strain our health care system, just as demand is surging beyond what it can handle in even the most optimistic scenario. The fact is that our national stockpile was never built or designed to cope with a nation-wide pandemic. What’s worse, the impact of the virus has crippled the global supply chain for PPE right when it’s needed most.
Across social media, doctors, nurses, paramedics and others are sharing their stories with the hashtag #GetMePPE as they continue to care for COVID-19 patients despite lacking proper equipment. We heard you.
Kreysler & Associates is a composites fabrication company in Northern California that has been advancing the state-of-the-art in its industry since 1982. As a California business, we’ve been forced to close our shop doors during this crisis. But just because we can’t work doesn’t mean we can’t help.
A good friend of ours, Carl Bass, reached out with an opportunity to contribute by helping mass-produce a face shield design initially developed by Chris Taggart, a friend of Carl's. We've been working with them to streamline production and to provide able hands to assemble units, but we need to ramp up our output to meet the demand.
All donations to this campaign will go first to acquiring materials, fabricating face shields, and delivering finished products to frontline healthcare workers where they are needed most urgently. Healthcare workers are already waiting for these supplies at hospitals in major cities battling the outbreak. We know hospitals are running dangerously low on inventory, and in some cases are requiring workers to re-use the supplies they do have. We won’t let these heroes fight unprotected & alone.
OUR GOAL
10,000 units is our starting goal, but honestly, we just want to make as many shields as possible. We don't have a final figure yet, because we don't really know when demand will end. No matter what, we will continue to keep you updated with our progress, so watch this space.
UPDATES
We will be providing updates from the healthcare workers that your donations directly impact on Twitter @shieldinghealth and Instagram @shieldinghealth.
FAQ
Why face shields?
Face shields are a critical component of PPE that not only protect healthcare workers’ faces, they also shield their more delicate N95 masks from respiratory droplets from infected patients and the environment. These shields are much easier and more reliably cleaned than N95 masks alone, increasing their usable lifespan.
It’s our mission to get as many face shields into the hands of the healthcare professionals who need them most. Time is of the essence. Every day without these vital supplies puts the health of doctors and nurses at significant risk, and depletes the supply of other already scarce PPE even further.
How will the funds be used?
Funds will go first to facilitating the purchase of materials and delivery of shields and other respirator covers for frontline healthcare workers at hospitals. Our project leadership team is donating their time and are foregoing compensation for their work. No one from Kreysler & Associates or anyone else affiliated with this effort is benefiting financially in any way from this campaign.
If for any reason we have any funds or resources remaining, we will donate them to Direct Relief , an organization that's been providing emergency medical supplies to healthcare workers since 1948. You can read third-party analysis of their track record as a charitable organization here.
For full transparency, Kreysler & Associates will publish a complete accounting of funds received and spent upon completion of the project.
What have you accomplished so far?
(1) We've sourced a vendor for baseball caps that makes the face shield wearable.
(2) We've sourced materials for producing an initial run of ~3,000 PAPR covers, shipping today (April 3)
(3) We've developed a die to allow us to cut PAPR cover materials en masse.
Why aren’t hospitals or the local/state/federal government ordering these shields directly?
Hospitals and government agencies are doing everything they can to procure all the supplies that they need. However, due to supply chain limitations and extreme levels of demand, they are currently experiencing unprecedented shortages. We are fortunate to have tools available to us to help turn raw materials into the supplies that our healthcare workers urgently need.
How is this fundraiser for COVID-19 relief different from the others I’m seeing?
We want to aid and assist healthcare as directly as possible by providing equipment that they cannot obtain through normal channels that have been disrupted due to the virus’ impact on the global supply chain. We saw a unique opportunity to be part of the solution to this problem, but we need your help to make it happen.
With the tremendous strain this outbreak has put on the healthcare system, the larger economy, and all our relationships, there is no shortage of causes in need of your help, and we absolutely encourage you to give charitably to other causes as well!
How do you prioritize who receives the mask?
The healthcare workers on the frontline of COVID-19 are those in the Intensive Care Units (ICUs) and in the Emergency Room. We try our best to donate shields to ICU & ER Units, as they are the ones who are likely to have the highest quantity of cases and the greatest need for the protection offered by the shields.
Are donations tax deductible?
Currently, donations are not tax-deductible. If you know of a relevant or related 501(c)3 charity that would like to support our efforts, we would love to partner with them. Until then, we have realized that the need is so urgent that we must move forward and hope that you will donate.
I want to get involved! Are there ways to help besides donation?
Absolutely! If you are a healthcare professional, please contact us directly at [email redacted] or [phone redacted] for how we can get these products to you as soon as possible. In addition, spread the word among your co-workers, your union, and your friends.
If you would like to make a single shield IMMEDIATELY, please follow the directions in Carl Bass's Instructable.
If know healthcare workers personally, please let them know that the best way for us to get supplies into their hands is to contact us at [email redacted] or [phone redacted].
If you are want to volunteer to help us with assembly or distribution you can contact us at [email redacted] with a subject headline “PPE Assembly Distribution Help” or call [phone redacted].
If you are have a direct relationship with PPE manufacturers that can provide materials or equipment at market costs, you can e-mail us at [email redacted] with a subject headline “PPE Equipment Manufacturer”.
If you are a member of the press, or would like to connect us with a member of the press, you can e-mail us with a subject headline “Press Contact” to [email redacted].
FOLLOW US:
Twitter: @shieldinghealth
Instagram: @shieldinghealthcare
Hashtag: #ShieldingHealthcare
Photo of nurses by Angela Gleaves
Hospitals across the US are running dangerously low on personal protective equipment (PPE) for our frontline healthcare workers. If they fall sick, it will further strain our health care system, just as demand is surging beyond what it can handle in even the most optimistic scenario. The fact is that our national stockpile was never built or designed to cope with a nation-wide pandemic. What’s worse, the impact of the virus has crippled the global supply chain for PPE right when it’s needed most.
Across social media, doctors, nurses, paramedics and others are sharing their stories with the hashtag #GetMePPE as they continue to care for COVID-19 patients despite lacking proper equipment. We heard you.
Kreysler & Associates is a composites fabrication company in Northern California that has been advancing the state-of-the-art in its industry since 1982. As a California business, we’ve been forced to close our shop doors during this crisis. But just because we can’t work doesn’t mean we can’t help.
A good friend of ours, Carl Bass, reached out with an opportunity to contribute by helping mass-produce a face shield design initially developed by Chris Taggart, a friend of Carl's. We've been working with them to streamline production and to provide able hands to assemble units, but we need to ramp up our output to meet the demand.
All donations to this campaign will go first to acquiring materials, fabricating face shields, and delivering finished products to frontline healthcare workers where they are needed most urgently. Healthcare workers are already waiting for these supplies at hospitals in major cities battling the outbreak. We know hospitals are running dangerously low on inventory, and in some cases are requiring workers to re-use the supplies they do have. We won’t let these heroes fight unprotected & alone.
OUR GOAL
10,000 units is our starting goal, but honestly, we just want to make as many shields as possible. We don't have a final figure yet, because we don't really know when demand will end. No matter what, we will continue to keep you updated with our progress, so watch this space.
UPDATES
We will be providing updates from the healthcare workers that your donations directly impact on Twitter @shieldinghealth and Instagram @shieldinghealth.
FAQ
Why face shields?
Face shields are a critical component of PPE that not only protect healthcare workers’ faces, they also shield their more delicate N95 masks from respiratory droplets from infected patients and the environment. These shields are much easier and more reliably cleaned than N95 masks alone, increasing their usable lifespan.
It’s our mission to get as many face shields into the hands of the healthcare professionals who need them most. Time is of the essence. Every day without these vital supplies puts the health of doctors and nurses at significant risk, and depletes the supply of other already scarce PPE even further.
How will the funds be used?
Funds will go first to facilitating the purchase of materials and delivery of shields and other respirator covers for frontline healthcare workers at hospitals. Our project leadership team is donating their time and are foregoing compensation for their work. No one from Kreysler & Associates or anyone else affiliated with this effort is benefiting financially in any way from this campaign.
If for any reason we have any funds or resources remaining, we will donate them to Direct Relief , an organization that's been providing emergency medical supplies to healthcare workers since 1948. You can read third-party analysis of their track record as a charitable organization here.
For full transparency, Kreysler & Associates will publish a complete accounting of funds received and spent upon completion of the project.
What have you accomplished so far?
(1) We've sourced a vendor for baseball caps that makes the face shield wearable.
(2) We've sourced materials for producing an initial run of ~3,000 PAPR covers, shipping today (April 3)
(3) We've developed a die to allow us to cut PAPR cover materials en masse.
Why aren’t hospitals or the local/state/federal government ordering these shields directly?
Hospitals and government agencies are doing everything they can to procure all the supplies that they need. However, due to supply chain limitations and extreme levels of demand, they are currently experiencing unprecedented shortages. We are fortunate to have tools available to us to help turn raw materials into the supplies that our healthcare workers urgently need.
How is this fundraiser for COVID-19 relief different from the others I’m seeing?
We want to aid and assist healthcare as directly as possible by providing equipment that they cannot obtain through normal channels that have been disrupted due to the virus’ impact on the global supply chain. We saw a unique opportunity to be part of the solution to this problem, but we need your help to make it happen.
With the tremendous strain this outbreak has put on the healthcare system, the larger economy, and all our relationships, there is no shortage of causes in need of your help, and we absolutely encourage you to give charitably to other causes as well!
How do you prioritize who receives the mask?
The healthcare workers on the frontline of COVID-19 are those in the Intensive Care Units (ICUs) and in the Emergency Room. We try our best to donate shields to ICU & ER Units, as they are the ones who are likely to have the highest quantity of cases and the greatest need for the protection offered by the shields.
Are donations tax deductible?
Currently, donations are not tax-deductible. If you know of a relevant or related 501(c)3 charity that would like to support our efforts, we would love to partner with them. Until then, we have realized that the need is so urgent that we must move forward and hope that you will donate.
I want to get involved! Are there ways to help besides donation?
Absolutely! If you are a healthcare professional, please contact us directly at [email redacted] or [phone redacted] for how we can get these products to you as soon as possible. In addition, spread the word among your co-workers, your union, and your friends.
If you would like to make a single shield IMMEDIATELY, please follow the directions in Carl Bass's Instructable.
If know healthcare workers personally, please let them know that the best way for us to get supplies into their hands is to contact us at [email redacted] or [phone redacted].
If you are want to volunteer to help us with assembly or distribution you can contact us at [email redacted] with a subject headline “PPE Assembly Distribution Help” or call [phone redacted].
If you are have a direct relationship with PPE manufacturers that can provide materials or equipment at market costs, you can e-mail us at [email redacted] with a subject headline “PPE Equipment Manufacturer”.
If you are a member of the press, or would like to connect us with a member of the press, you can e-mail us with a subject headline “Press Contact” to [email redacted].
FOLLOW US:
Twitter: @shieldinghealth
Instagram: @shieldinghealthcare
Hashtag: #ShieldingHealthcare
Photo of nurses by Angela Gleaves
Fundraising team: Kreysler & Associates (2)
Patrick Delorey
Organizer
American Canyon, CA
Leone Bratcher
Beneficiary
Gene Cooper
Team member
