Altruism in the Wake of Adversity
Goodwin University donates COVID-19 healthcare supplies to ECHN and Saint Francis Hospital

Similar to the empty aisles of toilet paper, cleaning products, and meat products in grocery stores, the effects of the Coronavirus are rendering much-needed medical supplies a real-time rarity. With the persistence of the COVID-19 pandemic, to remain sustainable during the difficulties of the Coronavirus crisis, healthcare providers are pulling together any readily available resources they may have.

So, when a local hospital and health network rang their alarms for assistance, Goodwin University answered the call. On March 23, Provost and Dean of Faculty Danielle Wilken, Dean of the School of Nursing and Health Professions Paula Dowd, and Assistant Dean Janice Watts, along with several other Goodwin deans and program directors, dropped everything in the midst of their long online educational to-do lists to take action. In response to the healthcare supply concern, the Goodwin faculty and staff gladly told Saint Francis Hospital and ECHN to “take whatever you need.”

Ismael Roman, Goodwin’s Director of Custodial Operations, was just arriving for his shift on Goodwin’s quiet campus when he walked up to see faculty and staff handling boxes of medical supplies. After emptying out labs and clinics campus-wide, when Jan Watts asked for Ismael’s assistance, he didn’t stop to ask questions. Instead, he stopped right in his tracks and lent a helping hand, gathering the medical materials onto carts, and moving them into Goodwin vans. His supervisors, Vice President of Physical Facilities and IT Bryant Harrell and Assistant VP for Facilities Ray Maselek also played their parts, doing some heavy-lifting to soften the healthcare supply shortage.

“Everyone was on the same page, this wasn’t a one-person, one-department effort,” Paula Dowd explained. “It was collaborative between facilities, nursing, and all the professions. Everybody recognized the importance of helping our healthcare providers during this time of need. And because everybody was so collective in their efforts, we were able to pull it all together in an hour and a half.”

Goodwin University program departments that donated their medical supplies to the combatting COVID-19 include: Nursing; Respiratory Care; science labs, Business, Technology, and Manufacturing; Histology; and Dental Hygiene. Goodwin’s donation included: 498 boxes of gloves, 64 gowns, 18 pairs of safety glasses, 2,100 masks, 100 pairs of booties, and 36 boxes Sani wipes. The supplies were then transferred off of Goodwin grounds and off to serve the greater good of the community.

In trying times like these, we discover who we truly are at our core. As our character is tested, so is our compassion for others. More than ever, now is the time to support those in need. It’s pivotal during this pandemic to hold onto hope, and to lend a helping hand. In the days ahead, it’s essential to show your sense of community. Intentionally bringing positivity into someone’s life, even for a brief moment, can make all the difference. Going along with ideals of kindness and goodness, the moment is now to act selflessly and put the humanity back in human kind.