Supermarket giant Coles delivered 200 care packs to Werribee Mercy Hospital staff last week.
The generous gesture came about after a Mercy Health nurse, Ebony, contacted Gold FM’s breakfast program and said her colleagues often felt “parched” while wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) for long stretches of time.
Ebony asked if Gold FM listeners knew of a sports drinks company who would be willing to assist some dehydrated nurses.
Ebony’s query resulted in corporate organisations coming forward to help, including Coles.
Coles sent the 200 care packs – containing shampoos, deodorants, face and hand creams, bags of lollies, fruit and nut bars and other treats – to Werribee Mercy Hospital’s loading dock last week.
Mercy Health human resources general manager Karen Cicero said determining a fair way of allocating the donated gifts among hospital staff was a challenge.
“It is stating the obvious that some areas of our hospitals have been under enormous pressure, and in this case we really have tried to reward those who have been at the forefront in the fight against this horrendous virus,” Ms Cicero said.
A member of the hospital’s human resources team involved in allocating the gift bags said it was “so moving” to see the hospital staff wanting to share the Coles gift packs.
The HR staff member said this was especially generous, given that for several months, many hospital employees “have been putting themselves at risk, caring for others”.
Werribee Mercy Hospital staff said they wanted to send “a big thanks” to Coles for its generosity.
Mercy Health issued a statement which said: “WMH staff could not have been more grateful for the corporate generosity.”
The gift bags were shared among staff at multiple hospitals.
