Delivery company answers plea for patient treat packs
A NURSE’S appeal for food and cosmetics for patients who cannot get supplies and treats from home due to the coronavirus lockdown has led to packages being delivered to 160 hospitals nationwide.
Staff nurse Nikitta Jones wrote to delivery firm DPD earlier this month asking for a shopping bag of cosmetics, personal hygiene and food supplies for her ward because families were no longer allowed to visit under the Covid-19 restrictions.
The palliative care nurse at Ysbyty Cwm Cynon approached the firm because her partner Nikos Minadakis is a delivery driver at its Cardiff depot.
DPD said that after its chief executive Dwain McDonald discussed the idea, it had “snowballed”, with staff donating more than 30,000 items within a week.
The first wave of deliveries to 160 NHS hospitals nationwide took place last week, with 30,000 more items being delivered yesterday, DPD added.
DPD said the list of items was agreed with the NHS and two types of package were created.
These were a welfare pack containing cosmetics and toiletries such as shampoo, shower gel, sanitary products, toothpaste, make-up, shaving foam and disposable razors, and a food and treat pack of instant noodles, energy drinks, biscuits, crisps, tea and coffee.
The firm said the packages will be delivered to hospitals all over the UK, including in London, Leeds, Oxford, Cambridge, Manchester, Newcastle and Edinburgh.
Ms Jones said: “Nikos was telling me what DPD were doing to help the NHS with deliveries at this crucial time, and as a frontline worker I know how important that is. I thought it was worth a cheeky email, but I wasn’t expecting the response I got. Thank you to everyone at DPD, it really will make a huge difference.”
Mr McDonald said: “I’m really pleased we were able to do this for Nikitta and for the NHS teams around the country. We want to do all we can to help the NHS.”