The first was the cancellation of commencements at high schools and colleges nationwide. The second was the global shortage of personal protective equipment for health care workers.As the Covid-19 pandemic began to spread nationwide, Than Moore, a physician’s assistant at UVM Medical Center, began to notice two problems that he suspected might have one solution.
Moore thought that the thousands of canceled graduation ceremonies offered an opportunity: Why not repurpose gowns as part of the protective gear needed for health care workers who are struggling to find enough supplies during the pandemic? To answer that question, he launched a website to help grads and healthcare workers make the connection.
In less than a week, Moore said demand for the gowns is already in the thousands. “There are doctors and nurses using trash bags as makeshift gowns right now,” Moore said. “Those don’t cover your arms or your legs. We’re just trying to provide some sort of protective barrier between doctors and patients.”