In a troubling incident highlighting the ongoing challenges faced by healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, a nurse from New Jersey has been suspended after utilizing GoFundMe to raise $12,000 for essential personal protective equipment (PPE) for her colleagues in the ICU at the Newark Beth Israel Medical Center. Amid rising cases of COVID-19 in densely populated areas, hospitals across the nation are grappling with severe shortages of protective supplies.
The nurse, Maria Thompson, reportedly used the funds to purchase approximately 500 masks, 4,000 shoe covers, and 150 jumpsuits intended for ICU staff to safeguard both themselves and their patients against the virus. Instead of expressing gratitude, hospital management suspended Thompson for distributing what they labeled as “unauthorized” medical supplies.
According to Thompson, she sourced most of the items from eBay, alongside three fellow nurses who requested anonymity when speaking to ProPublica. They asserted that hospital administrators failed to provide adequate protective gear and did not communicate any prohibition against purchasing supplies independently. The GoFundMe campaign clearly stated the urgent need for PPE for frontline healthcare workers, detailing that funds would be allocated for overalls, shoe covers, masks, respirator filters, sanitizers, and wipes.
One nurse expressed, “We understand this is what we signed up for, but it’s vital that we have sufficient protective equipment to care for our patients without risking contamination.” In a statement regarding the suspension, the hospital indicated that it had ended by the following Monday but emphasized that no employee is permitted to distribute unauthorized medical supplies within the facility.
Interestingly, Newark Beth Israel reportedly had $186 million in net assets as of its 2017 tax filings, and its CEO earned over $1.4 million in total compensation. Hospital board chairman, James Carter, acknowledged that while financial resources aren’t the issue, PPE supplies remain critically scarce everywhere. One nurse pointed out that if the hospital can afford to compensate its executives so generously, it should also be capable of procuring necessary supplies for its staff.
The hospital attributed its challenges to the distribution methods of supplies, stating, “No one person, institution, or hospital can independently solve this global supply shortage.” For additional insights into this topic, you can check out this post on our other blog.
In summary, a New Jersey nurse faced suspension after raising funds to acquire PPE for her ICU colleagues amid critical shortages, highlighting systemic issues in supply distribution and hospital resource management during the pandemic. For those seeking more information on pregnancy and home insemination, the CDC offers excellent resources.