CLEVELAND — Shortages of personal protective equipment for doctors and nurses have been a hot button issue over the past few weeks.
On Thursday, healthcare workers in Cleveland were calling it out.
Protestors from care facilities gathered in downtown Cleveland to demand PPE to protect themselves from dangerous illnesses and diseases in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. The #GetMePPE movement is centered around providing the necessary equipment to nursing homes, care facilities and client homes across the country, as opposed to just hospitals and large medical centers.
“Healthcare workers like me, and like so many of my co-workers and workers across the country, are pushing ourselves to the limit -- and way past it -- because we are here to save lives.” said Shelia Hunter, a Cleveland State Tested Nurse Assistant (STNA) and member of Service Employee International Union (SEIU). “If I’m an essential worker, I deserve to be treated like one. Personal protective equipment is a matter of life and death for me. That’s why we’re raising our voices as essential workers to demand our leaders get me PPE.”
Those who work in the field are asking lawmakers and President Trump to make PPE readily available to all healthcare workers across the country and to cover sick time and leave for all medical employees as well.
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