Partners are united to give key workers vital protection

A CO-ORDINATED effort from local schools, businesses and healthcare organisations has seen 600 items of vital personal protective equipment (PPE) distributed among key workers fighting coronavirus.

Frontline staff within GP practices, care homes and the healthcare community in Rochdale have received specially created visors made by local teachers, pupils and businesses to help protect them from patients testing positive with coronavirus.

Staff at Rochdale Health Alliance (RHA) and Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale Primary Care Academy (HMR PCA) co-ordinated the efforts by working with the design and technology departments of high schools across the Rochdale borough and in some other areas.

Participating schools include Middleton

Technology School, Cardinal Langley Roman Catholic High School, Wardle Academy, the Co-op Academy in Walkden and Saddleworth School who have produced over 450 visors.

In addition, local IT business Nebular Cloud UK has produced 50 face mask extenders for the effort.

Meanwhile Kite Packaging has produced 100 visors, all of which have been distributed via primary care nursing teams to local care homes.

Dr Gill Tonge, director of the Primary Care Academy, said: “The community spirit and support our local primary care and community services have received from the schools, their teachers and pupils and local businesses has been outstanding. It’s amazing to see the wider community pull together and help the NHS manage this emergency.”

●●Julie Dowling, practice manager at Peterloo Medical Centre in Middleton takes delivery of the PPE from a staff member at the Middleton Technology School