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When the crown virus lock went into effect, Jayne Maxwell was forced to close her sewing shop in Rotherham and leave her staff without permission.
She was expecting a few quiet weeks, but the seamstress is now busier than ever as she coordinates a growing local team of scrub volunteers for NHS staff facing a shortage across the country.
“We get messages every day through Facebook with requests, and we’ve made 30 pairs in a week, but it was difficult,” said Maxwell, the owner of From Rags to Stitches. “I don’t dare announce it or we couldn’t keep up with demand.”
Staff at Doncaster, Bassetlaw and Rotherham Hospitals, as well as local GP surgeries, have issued orders. “We are fighting, but we are trying to stay,” he added.
Scrubs, the simple clothing doctors wear when dealing with patients, are being used by increasing numbers of NHS personnel as part of their personal protective equipment and are being changed more frequently to stop the spread of Covid-19 , so the voluntary sewers around the country have come together to make up for the deficit.
They not only make scrubs in a variety of sizes, but also hats, bags for house staff to safely transport and wash clothes, and headbands to relieve pressure from masks.
Some people, like Sarah Featherstone, a self-insulating teacher in Sheffield, are adding personal touches like “thank you” messages on the label. “I think when you’re isolating, it feels really good to know that you’re part of a great network of people and part of the bigger picture, really working to help people on the front line,” he said.
“Cleanup centers” have sprung up across the country to coordinate sewers willing to offer their services, while the Facebook group For the Love of Scrubs has gained nearly 40,000 members.
A group in South London, one of the areas most affected by the coronavirus, has raised almost £ 10,000 for materials, with the participation of people from all walks of life.
“We have grandmothers working on old Singer sewing machines that produce scrub bags, some professionals, some competent costume designers, and some novice sewers,” said one of the group’s coordinators, Elizabeth Price, who has recruited more than 100 volunteers. in just over a week. A costume designer for the show The Lion King has even helped connect them with a tailor.
“Is there a case of saying that this really shouldn’t be necessary? These are unprecedented circumstances and I think the acquisition process may not be streamlined enough for the current situation,” Price said.
“But I am constantly growing and humiliated by the beauty of the people,” she added. “From the people who quarantine in a socially detached way with a shy smile, to the best tailors in the West End, everyone is desperate to do what they can to help.”
Denise Cleal is the wardrobe supervisor at the Teatro Granero at Cirencester, Gloucestershire. After finding himself on the loose end when the theater was closed, he has instead turned his skills from sewing machines to scrubs at home.
“You feel pretty under pressure because you know there’s a surgery in there waiting for you to finish doing them,” said Cleal, who has been using spare material from the theater closet. “It’s not like a hobby or” Oh yeah, I think I’ll do it a bit now. “I’m working 10 hours a day.
“But sewing is a pleasure and being able to take it to such a worthwhile cause is tremendous for me,” he said.
While some hospitals specify plain dark fabrics, others have said they are happy that the scrubs are made from different colored or patterned materials, meaning sewers can use donations of fabric like good quality clean bedding.
Exfoliating is an important way for Maxwell to support his daughter Emma, a sister nurse at Rotherham Hospital who works on the front line treating patients with Covid-19.
“It makes me forget where she is and what she is doing because, obviously, as a mother, I worry when I see things on television,” she said. “But I’m doing it because it’s the right thing, not because of a round of applause.
“Business might not go through this, and if it doesn’t, then so be it, we’re trying to save lives and that’s what it’s about now.”
• Coronavirus and volunteering: how can I help in the UK?
