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Hospitals across Montgomery County have turned to the community to help collect medical supplies in preparation for a potential surge in patients as the coronavirus spreads.

Kristin Feliciano, a spokeswoman for Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring and Germantown, said community donations have been funneling into the medical centers.

Patients have provided the emergency department with meal delivery . Local dentists and nail salons have donated personal protective equipment. Church groups and others in the community have provided homemade face masks.

Feliciano said some supplies from the hospitals’ vendors have been slow to arrive, such as certain sizes of bottles of hand sanitizer, so Holy Cross began purchasing larger bottles to use for refills.

Shady Grove Medical Center in Rockville, operated by Adventist HealthCare, has the supplies it needs, but is accepting donations of personal protective equipment and cleaning supplies from the community “in anticipation for possible surges” of patients, Taylor Kelley, a spokeswoman for the hospital, wrote in an email on Friday.

“Since no one knows how long this situation will last, we want to be smart today, so we can be safe tomorrow,” she wrote. “Our supply chain is tapping into its vendor and supplier resources to ensure that we have deliveries now and in the weeks ahead.”

Adventist will open a centralized donation location in Germantown for people to drop off supplies. More details on the location will be shared later, Kelley wrote.

Kelley wrote that the hospital has requested supplies from the county stockpile and is expecting them soon.

Shady Grove’s surgery and patient volumes are dropping and creating space, and the hospital has identified additional spaces in the event of a surge of patients, Kelley wrote.

Holy Cross, which began accepting donations a few days ago, is also working with its supply chain through Trinity Health and has obtained all of the supplies its facilities need, Feliciano said.

In addition to personal protective equipment and unopened cleaning supplies, Holy Cross is asking for donations of medical equipment such as ventilators, IV pumps, hospital beds, gurneys, physiologic monitors, and equipment sterilizer machines.

Feliciano said that although some supplies have been slow to arrive, none have run out.

Suburban Hospital in Bethesda placed a donation station on McKinley Street on Thursday, according to an email from a hospital administrator shared on a neighborhood listserv.

The email on Wednesday stated that the donation area would be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It did not specify what days donations would be accepted.

“All will be locked away for safety and future use,” the email stated.

A spokesman for Suburban did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Friday.

Montgomery County’s Office of Procurement, on its Twitter account and website, said it was looking to purchase gloves, wipes , N95 masks, and personal protective equipment.

In addition to various medical supplies. Holy Cross has received cards, photos and drawings of gratitude to the hospital staff from the community — what Feliciano said were some of the “most special” gifts.

“These notes and photos mean the world to our staff, so please do encourage them,” she wrote in an email.

Here’s what is being accepted at local hospitals: Holy Cross: • Disposable surgical masks • N95 masks (all sizes) • Face shields • Eye goggles (the type commonly seen in dental clinics) • Disposable surgical caps/bouffants • Non-sterile but clean clinic gloves, Nitrile (all sizes) • Sterile surgical gloves, Nitrile (all sizes) • Disposable surgical/procedure gowns (all sizes) • Disposable shoe covers • Homemade personal protective equipment (100% cotton masks that meet certain specifications) • Ventilators (adult or pediatric) • Physiologic monitors • IV pumps • Hospital beds • Gurneys • Equipment sterilizer machines

Contact Dr. Greg Jolissaint at 301-754-8087 or greg.jolissaint@trinity-health.org to arrange a donation of these items.

Cleaning supply donations of sanitizing wipes and hand sanitizer can be arranged with Jim Duerr at 301-754-7076 or jim.duerr@holycrosshealth.org.

Monetary donations for Holy Cross to purchase supplies can be made here.

Notes and pictures to the hospital staff can be sent to Holy Cross’s Facebook page or by mail to: Kristin Feliciano Holy Cross Health 1500 Forest Glen Road Silver Spring, MD 20910

Shady Grove: • Personal protective equipment • N-95 respirator masks • Surgical isolation masks • Isolation gowns • Ear loop masks • Isolation masks with visor • Full face shields (with forehead straps) • Eye shields • Disinfectant bleach wipes • Hand sanitizers • Goggles • Nitrile gloves

Supply and monetary donations can be arranged online here.

Suburban: • N95 masks • Face shields • Surgical masks (not hand sewn) • Non-latex gloves • Unopened hand sanitizer • Unopened sanitizing wipes Montgomery County Office of Procurement is seeking to purchase:

• Gloves • Sanitizing wipes • N95 masks • Personal protective equipment

Purchases can be arranged by emailing procure@montgomerycountymd.gov.

Briana Adhikusuma can be reached at briana.adhikusuma@bethesdamagazine.com.

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