We are inspired by people around the globe stepping up to support one another during this unprecedented crisis. Here are some powerful examples of people taking action:
Yale student leads 2,700 making prescription and grocery runs amid COVID-19 crisis
Thousands of volunteers are stepping up across the country during the coronavirus pandemic, delivering supplies and helping the vulnerable.
People are helping each other fight coronavirus, one Google spreadsheet at a time
By this point, many of you may have seen the Google Docs, Google Forms, and other spreadsheets circulating online with the words “mutual aid” in the title. That’s a fancy way of saying we should all help each other get through this pandemic, giving what we can to neighbors and strangers alike. In these shared documents, thousands of people are jotting down their contact information and offering to do just that. monster list contains links to more than 140 mutual aid groups spanning many US states, plus additional links for groups in Canada, the United Kingdom, and Germany.
UK asks for 250,000 volunteers to help its health service cope with the coronavirus outbreak
“We are seeking a quarter of a million volunteers, people in good health, to help the NHS, for shopping, for delivery of medicines and to support those who are shielded to protect their own health.” It is hoped that the network of volunteers — which will be known as NHS Volunteer Responders — will help the up-to 1.5 million people especially vulnerable to coronavirus who have been told to “shield” themselves for 12 weeks.
States Get Creative To Find And Deploy More Health Workers In COVID-19 Fight
Public health experts say the United States is in for a shortage of health care workers in many places soon, as cases of COVID-19 escalate. First, the ranks of front-line health workers will be stretched thin, as hospitals fill. And if health care workers have to scramble to care for sick patients without enough protective gear, they will get infected with the virus and fall ill, too.
States are loosening their licensing rules to give those with clinical skill the ability to pitch in, such as allowing out-of-state physicians to practice right away, asking retired physicians to volunteer, and more. Most states are making these kinds of regulatory changes, according to a tracker maintained by the Federation of State Medical Boards.