Einstein NICU nurse's request for masks leads to outpouring of support

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Pa. - A NICU nurse's request sparked hundreds of masks being donated to those on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Signs of gratitude you see in the hospital windows outside Einstein Montgomery are just as precious as all the tender care going on inside the maternal child unit. NICU nurse Amanda Jacobus posted a private request on Facebook looking for a way to stretch their limited number of hospital-issued protective gear.

"A PPE mask can last you maybe one or two shifts before it starts to wear down naturally," Jacobus told FOX 29.

One of her Facebook friends got Jacobus' permission to share her request publicly and it quickly went viral.

"So it went viral and I started getting requests how many do you need, what do they need to be, and I will tell you they have to be specific to the hospital, they have to have a pocket in it," Jacobus explained. "Putting them inside these homemade washable masks. The one I have inside mine is now three weeks in."

FULL COVERAGE: CORONAVIRUS

Still clean and protective, she figured because the mask type is unusual, she'd get enough to cover her unit but think again.

"It is unbelievable. I have gotten so far to date over 500 masks donated, which is an incredible number," she said.  

Not only are they sharing with every unit in Einstein Montgomery, but the special masks are being sent over to Einstein Philadelphia and Einstein's Elkins Park Medical Center.

Not a single donor will accept even a penny for buying material and sewing them.

Jacobus reflected on the sign somebody posted there at the hospital door, reading "heroes work here." "These people are my heroes in the community. They don't realize it but they are truly unsung here's to healthcare workers," she said.

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