Care home staff are being offered 100 uniform bags to stay safe during the coronavirus pandemic after a Dundee pair made more than 1,000.
Fiona Rattray and Evelyn Soutar have crafted 1,042 cotton bags for NHS nurses and care workers to safely store uniforms after shift.
The voluntary Dundee seamstresses thanked the “unbelievable” public after appealing for more material in The Courier last month.
And there are still 100 bags left over that they are keen to donate to care home workers.
Fiona said: “I never expected to receive this amount of help. It’s been unbelievable. People have put themselves out so much to give us material.
“There has even been people cycling to my home with bags of fabric.
“We have 100 bags sitting here at the moment and are asking care homes to contact us if they need bags.”
Fiona has been supported by her daughters. Susan Smith, a critical care nurse at Ninewells Hospital, has been handing bags to nurses in the hospital, while Gillian Boath has been distributing them to nurses in the community.
While appealing for material, the pair also set up a JustGiving page to pay for it. This has raised £727, with surplus money donated towards the renal comfort fund at Ninewells.
Fiona thanked the following companies for donations of material: Flamingo Fabrics, Scrap Antics, Bedford Sewing and Knitting and Wemyss Fabrics, including its owner Scott Cameron.
Fiona hailed Forfar couple Stan and Karen Crate, as well as St Andrews man Mr Will. “He dropped very good quality fabric at St Andrews Police Station, who took it to St Andrews hospital who then took it to Susan at Ninewells.”
As well as all departments in Ninewells, uniform bags have been received by Kingsway Care Centre, Pitkerro Care Home, St MArys Care Home in Monifieth, Craigie House.
A study by De Montfort University in Leicester suggests that healthcare workers who come into contact with Covid-19 patients risk contaminating their home environment when they take their uniforms home.
Fiona and Evelyn’s cotton bags – complete with a drawstring – can be put straight into a washing machine to reduce this risk of coronavirus transmission.
- If you are involved in a local care home and can make use of the remaining uniform bags, contact Fiona on 07534 834 998
