March 26, 2020To members and friends: There are many needs and ideas to match them in times like this. If you have any older Ipads you are no longer using, and can't bear to toss, they can be "cleaned" to remove your data, and it's not all that difficult. Let us know and we will start the work!
To: Rotary, West U [info@westurotary.org] From: Katie Walker [katie.walker@harrishealth.org]
Good afternoon, my name is Katie Walker, and I work in the development department at Harris Health System, Harris County's public healthcare system. We have two hospitals in our system: Ben Taub in the Medical Center and LBJ on the northeast 610 loop.
I am reaching out because our hospitals are currently caring for COVID19 patients, and we are preparing to start caring for more as the infection continues to spread throughout our community. I saw that you all have members making masks for healthcare professionals, and I cannot say thank you enough for being proactive in this fight. We already know Houston is a strong community, and we are in awe of how everyone is banding together to help in this time of need. Another need we have seen and are looking to community partners like the Rotary Club of West U to help with is a specific need for iPads and webcams. We are beginning to use iPads at both of our hospitals to help care for patients in isolation. The iPads allow providers to communicate with patients without having to enter the room. This means they do not have to don PPE every time they wish to check in on a patient and allows us to stretch our supply of PPE. The webcams are helping us increase our telehealth visits for patients with less serious issues, so they do not have to enter our centers. This keeps everyone safer during this time. If these emergency needs are something the rotary club can help with, please let me know. I can be reached via email at Katie.Walker@HarrisHealth.org or at 281-433-7557. Every donation counts, and we are grateful for the support of community partners like you! Thank you for your time and consideration.