Medical Equipment Bank Thriving at Visiting Nurses
By Kyle Spurr, The Chronicle, Centralia, Wash. | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
The Visiting Nurses Thrift Shop in
So far, nearly 600 people have been helped, according to Visiting Nurses Executive Director
"It's life changing. It's really positive," Collins said. "We just didn't know how well it was going to take off."
Some of the equipment is donated to Visiting Nurses, while other pieces are purchased by the nonprofit. People often take the equipment and return it when they are done using it, Collins said.
"The most important part is making sure all of this equipment is safe," Collins said. "It's cleaned up and made sure it's working properly."
The new medical equipment bank, open seven days per week, is the only one in
By having the bank, Visiting Nurses qualifies for grants it would not otherwise be qualified for, Collins said. The nonprofit was recently awarded a
Webb said her mother's health insurance will not cover the expense of a wheelchair, so she decided to make the trip from
"She has a walker to do physical therapy to keep her muscles going, but because she has a walker, they won't give her a wheelchair," Webb said. "They are turning people down left and right for medical procedures and special equipment."
Collins said the bank has become a benefit to
"There are so many people right now that are in financial situations where they have to make a decision about whether they are going to keep their electricity on or buy food or buy a shower transfer chair," Collins said. "We don't want them to make those decisions. We want them to benefit from what we have here."
With the success of the medical equipment bank in
Last week, a "Stuff the Truck" fundraiser was held in
"We are looking at doing this in other communities. If everything goes as planned, we are hoping to start giving out medical equipment in
Collins said the medical equipment bank falls in line with the
"They are so thankful they are getting a shower chair or a walker for way less than they would have to purchase it for," Collins said.
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