The great news today? With your help we were able to purchase 50 sets of medical grade hooded and booted coveralls, along with N95 certified medical grade face masks and nitrile gloves. This is one month’s worth of gear for two doctors or nurses, and they will go exclusively to medical staff attending COVID-19 patients in our local public hospitals! We obviously have a loooooong way to go, but it felt soooo good to purchase these today!

A group I belong to, Mazatlán Comparte, is comprised of service organizations, associations and private businesses here in Mazatlán looking to help those in need get food on their tables and looking to get effective personal protective equipment into the hands of medical staff who treat COVID-19 patients. It is an amazing team of talented volunteers working llloooooonggg hours to accomplish these goals. We are doing our absolute best to make sure that the personal protective equipment we purchase is certified and authentic; that it serves its purpose. We are scouring for the best prices. I myself have spent full-time this past week since we organized making connections, getting bids and having medical people test samples, between running our social media.

Several times a day since I joined the Mazatlán Comparte team, I get a new video from one of our local public hospitals that brings tears to my eyes. These doctors and nurses are working without adequate personal protective equipment. They are using masking tape to close their gowns. Today I received video of a COVID-19 patient being transported through the hospital and the patient didn’t even have a face mask to prevent contagion! They ask us not to publish the videos, but I glimpse a bit of what they are going through and it pains me deeply.

NOT medical masks; these are for carpenters.

NOT medical masks; these are for carpenters, though they are being sold for hospital use and are better than nothing.

As I’ve quickly learned, it is really difficult to help.

• I’ve worked with suppliers for days, only to find out they are lying about the quality of their product once I get the sample.
• Likewise, I’ve worked with suppliers who suddenly increase their price, or sell off to a higher bidder.
• There is just way too much medical equipment on the market that is pirated and ineffective and knowing how to distinguish what is what is a steep educational curve.
• There is too much equipment being sold at inflated prices, enabling vendors to profit off the pandemic. Sadly, even quite a few of our local vendors. We have tried our best to keep business here in our community, to keep the money at home. But people have to have the spirit of giving, not just profiting.
• Worse, there are truly wonderful people sewing fabric masks and making face covers, yet many of them when donated aren’t making it into the hands of the personnel who really need them.
• Some of the donated items even get sold.

What can you do? First of all, if you are out and about for essential errands, PLEASE wear only masks made for the average person, not medical-grade masks. At Mazatlán Comparte (Mazatlán Shares) we have been searching high and low to get certified, functionally appropriate personal protective equipment for the medical staff of our local public hospitals. The sad thing is that there is so little of it available. Now is NOT the time for average citizens to be using medical gear! Let’s save that for those working with COVID-19 patients.

Recent donation of homemade face shields from Ernesto Guerrero to ISSSTE

Recent donation of homemade face shields from Ernesto Guerrero to ISSSTE

Recent donation of homemade face shields from Ernesto Guerrero to ISSSTE

Recent donation of homemade face shields from Ernesto Guerrero to ISSSTE

Second, quite a few of you have contacted me to tell me you are making fabric masks or face shields you would like to donate. That is awesome!!! THANK YOU! Mazatlán Comparte is working closely with doctors and nursing staff at our local public hospitals: General Hospital, IMSS and ISSSTE. We will make sure your donation goes to those who most need what you have donated, depending on their patient load and current hospital supplies of equipment.

Most importantly, you can DONATE MONEY. Yes, I know most of us hate to part with our hard-earned money. But if not now, during this crisis, when? We will make sure your donation goes to buy NEEDED and FUNCTIONAL equipment for those who ACTUALLY TREAT COVID-19 patients in our public hospitals. Instructions for donating are below. If you want your money to buy medical supplies, donate to Hospice (information on the left). Be sure to indicate clearly on your donation that it is for “Mazatlán Comparte,” so they can distinguish the purpose of your gift, or send us a copy of the receipt. You can pay via PayPal, too; just scroll down to the bottom of the page and click the “Donate” button, adding in your comment during the process. If you want your money to go to buy food, please donate to the Food Bank (information on the right). They can buy much more food for the money you donate than you as a citizen are able to buy retail.

Bless you all! Thank you for all the help you give this community. Take care of yourself, each other, our neighbors. We will get through this. Share this post widely, if you would.