The COVID-19 pandemic has put an unprecedented strain on healthcare systems globally. With the number of cases growing daily in the United States, frontline health workers are in high demand. For the healthcare environment, this has required new flexibility — even when it comes to storage solutions.
The coronavirus crisis has created a great need for hospital beds, ventilators and protective gear such as masks, gowns, goggles and face shields. At the same, frontline doctors, nurses and specialists in particular areas are in high demand too.
"Aside from talking about ICU beds and ventilator capacity, our No. 1 concern is staff," Kevin Ward, treasurer and CFO of New York Presbyterian/Queens Hospital said in a Healthcare Dive article.
Then, once those people are onsite, the healthcare environment is facing a new challenge of providing somewhere for these added staff to store their stuff. The security of personal belongings offers peace of mind in the best of times. But, considering the high risk of contracting the virus, giving even temporary staff somewhere to put their possessions can also make a difference in helping to flatten the curve.
Providing Personal Storage Lockers Quickly
One Ohio hospital facing a shortage of staff lockers with the influx of medical personnel on-site turned to Patterson Pope for a rapid fix. Our certified installers quickly installed Hamilton Casework Day Use Lockers for the hospital’s temporary facility. These strong, durable, high-quality lockers give personnel a place to stow and secure their personal gear during their shift while the required staff increases.
The lockers may not look as attractive as our usual healthcare storage solutions, but they meet the need for increased personnel during this crazy time. Plus, when the pandemic is over, these 500 two-tier lockers can be relocated and repurposed to another permanent location in the hospital.
In the long-term, when made permanent, these lockers can be internally configured in a wide variety of ways to accommodate each individual’s personal storage needs. Our personal storage lockers can even be configured to include separately locked sections to provide additional security for valuables.
Plus, they can be easily updated over time as modern innovations present new requirements. For instance, Spacesaver recently added the option of installing USB charging ports along with electrical outlets.
In the future, these agile lockers can be built into a wall or a bank of them could be used as a partition while giving the healthcare environment’s users a place of their own.
Helping You Stay Agile
One of the ways we are helping some of our healthcare clients right now is with quick turn projects that can make a real difference where you are shifting, mobilizing or even building to quickly accommodate the growing demand. Some within a matter of days. To that end, here are a few products that we can quickly source for your needs.
- Modular Laminate Lockers – Laminate being much more anti-microbial than steel, these are ideal for your team and can be configured to meet an immediate need – with the flexibility to be reconfigured later.
- Wire Shelving – While you likely have this everywhere already, temporary or reconfiguring spaces likely create the need for more.
- Stainless Tables – In a similar fashion, if you are creating temp spaces or reconfiguring, you likely need more of them…and fast!
- Bedlifts – Ideal solution for storing and protecting beds that are not in use especially if your bed count is soaring.
- Stainless Worktable with Sink and Shelf – A great solution for quick-turn projects or temporary structures. Glad to provide pricing and turnaround.
- TempWall – Quick and easy to install, these walls are ideal for rapid deployment. Let me know if you would like more information
- Lockers on Casters – These metal lockers can literally go anywhere. Casters make them ideal for moving and reconfiguring spaces quickly.
Fully appreciating the great effort global healthcare workers are making right now to combat COVID-19, Patterson Pope is proud to have made this small contribution to the cause in its own way. The storage solutions we help implement can, in an indirect way, affect patient health. Not that we require any added motivation to always provide the best solutions to meet our customers’ needs, but it feels good to know we’re helping frontline workers better concentrate on the essential work they’re doing.
Every company in every industry is having to be flexible. Temporary lockers are just one of the adaptable storage solutions Patterson Pope offers. We’re here to help in any way we can.
