GRATITUDE for the dedication of frontline medical staff has prompted a Mornington Peninsula group to spring into action.
Hearing that nurses at Rosebud Hospital needed more scrubs, volunteers from Mt Martha’s Boomerang Bags group decided to do something about it. So far, they have made 30 set of scrubs in an array of colourful patterns. News spread and the group was recently asked to make scrubs for Frankston Hospital nurses as well.
Coordinator Robyn Ruhl said the job was a challenge for the group’s 10 members.
“We normally make fabric shopping bags to reduce people’s use of plastic bags and we’re proud to have made 3300 so far,” Ms Ruhl said. “Making scrubs is a far more ambitious project, but we really wanted to support our nurses.”
Mornington Peninsula Shire donated fabric to kick-start the group’s efforts, Ms Ruhl said. “Word then got out and we’ve since had fabulous materials given to us by the public.”
The biggest challenge has been getting hold of patterns: “Because of the pandemic, patterns for scrubs are hard to find,” Ms Ruhl said. “They’re getting sold out and, if we try to order them online, we can only get one.”
The need to stay physically apart is another challenge for the group. Instead of sewing together at Mt Martha House Community Centre as normal, members work on the scrubs at home. They have also had to create safe hygiene practices to transport and deliver materials to the homes of volunteers.
Ms Ruhl said the busy and demanding time for the group was also rewarding. “It’s easy to get blue thinking about how terrible this pandemic is, but if you have a purpose and can focus on doing something positive, it really can help you get through it.”
First published in the Southern Peninsula News – 28 April 2020
