Covid-19: Cape Town family doctors crowdfund to help keep home-based caregivers safe

A group of caring family doctors in Cape Town have established a Masks for Medics team in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Doctors Anthony Smith, Lauren Lee, Sonia Hough, Julie Etellin, Sarahan Brophy and Natalia Novikova are the committed faces behind the Masks for Medics team.

Having all served as doctors for 20 years and tended to patients from every demographic, they understand the value that all people bring to their communities – from the youngest to the oldest.

With government funding and traditional channels of distribution not covering Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers tending to home-based Covid-19 patients, the Masks for Medics team has launched a campaign on donations-based crowdfunding platform, BackaBuddy to bridge the gap and provide essential PPE to the healthcare professionals that have seemingly been forgotten.

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“There have been so many campaigns to support frontline healthcare workers in hospitals across the country, which is immensely important. However, with our campaign, we are focusing on the forgotten; the home-based carers, the nurses caring for the elderly who are most susceptible to the virus, the paramedics and emergency response personnel called out to help those in need and the palliative care practitioners caring for those on their deathbeds,” said Dr Anthony Smith.

The doctors hope to raise funds to:

·  Provide the critical PPE which includes gowns, masks, visors, gloves and sanitisers and necessary essential medical equipment such as monitors and thermometers to health care workers, doctors, nurses, palliative care practitioners, emergency response personal and carers to the elderly.

·  Provide training for health care workers.

·  Enable Covid-19 patients to be treated in their own homes and thus avoid overburdening the hospitals and healthcare systems.

·   Dispose of soiled PPE safely.

They aim to deliver these services to beneficiaries in the Cape Town CBD, the Cape Flats and in the many township communities.

The campaign went live on May 14  2020 and has thus far raised R120 245.33 towards the target of R500 000, with contributions from 70 donors, both locally and abroad.

“As lockdown eases, community spread increases and as winter approaches, we expect the number of positive Covid-19 patients to exponentially escalate.  Compounding this are the gross inequalities of the South African socio-economic terrain with many communities experiencing limited resources, overcrowded living conditions and profound vulnerability to the economic downturn this is your opportunity to truly make a difference in your community,” said Dr Smith.

If doctors would like to join the Masks for Medics team, contact masksformedicsct@gmail.com

To support this campaign, CLICK HERE

Follow the Masks For Medics team on social media for updates: Instagram and  Facebook