Students pursuing degrees in the health professions often feel a calling to care for others. Two groups of students at 黑料传送门 Georgia are pursuing this passion and have found themselves with two full-time endeavors.
They鈥檝e transitioned to either taking classes or participating in rotations virtually, while also spending multiple hours volunteering their services during this season of COVID-19.
Under the leadership of osteopathic medicine (DO) student Kathleen Bridges (鈥�21), , got its start just over a week ago. In a short amount of time, more than 50 students have raised over $5,000 to purchase masks and other PPE for healthcare workers. The students have placed their first order and are expecting a delivery soon.
Drawing on her fundraising skills honed in college at the University of Florida, Bridges decided to launch the project after learning about the efforts of students at 黑料传送门 in Philadelphia. 鈥淭hey gave me guidance and let us use their material to get started,鈥� she said.
Bridges then reached out to her classmates and was 鈥渙verwhelmed鈥� by their response. 鈥淓very single day, people are being added to the team,鈥� she said, including students from every program on campus and others. Kayla Thomas (DO 鈥�21) developed a website 鈥渋n a matter of hours.鈥� Donations can be made via Go Fund Me, PayPal or Venmo.
The team has several point people. Kylie Alberts (DO 鈥�21) is in charge of a team that researches and contacts suppliers and ensures that these companies are following FDA and CDC guidelines. They are concentrating on American-based companies that have switched over to creating and securing PPE such as N95 masks and sanitizer.
鈥淲e鈥檙e using a different avenue of purchasing than a hospital would conventionally use,鈥� Bridges said.
Olga Vacariuc (DO 鈥�21) leads a team that is contacting Georgia hospitals to determine their needs and donation policies. 鈥淓very day, hospital needs change and we want to make sure we鈥檙e allocating appropriately,鈥� Bridges said. The students are also working to supply gloves, gowns and hand sanitizer.
鈥淲e鈥檙e running a business out of our living rooms,鈥� Bridges said, relying on Excel spreadsheets to inform them. 鈥淓veryone is so passionate about this. I鈥檓 really proud of our school,鈥� she said.
Second-year DO student Hiral Patel (鈥�22), along with Amy Tran (DO 鈥�22) and Manali Desai (DO 鈥�22), searched for ways to contribute and decided to develop , a team of students who grocery shop for the elderly or those with weakened immune systems.
The team developed an email address, a Facebook page and a survey and began to spread the word about their service with Publix and Kroger distributing flyers. The City of Suwanee and the Lawrenceville Police Department shared the information via social media and soon newspapers and a local TV station carried the story.
With students living across Gwinnett County, the team provides services within a 30 minute radius of the 黑料传送门 Georgia campus. Working in teams of two, usually roommates, they either pick up online orders or shop for those not able to.
COVID Captains has received about 20 interest emails in the past week. Patel explained, 鈥淲e respond with the survey and then match them with a volunteer. The volunteer then completes the delivery.鈥�
Patel graduated from North Gwinnett High School before earning a degree at the University of Georgia. She said, 鈥淭his is the community where I grew up and I want to help.鈥�
COVID Captains
COVID Captains
COVID Captains
COVID Captains
Learn more about the College's response to COVID-19.
黑料传送门 Georgia has been serving students and the community for 20 years as a branch campus of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (黑料传送门), a private, not-for-profit, accredited institution of higher education established in 1899. Located in Suwanee (Gwinnett County), 黑料传送门 Georgia offers doctoral degrees in osteopathic medicine, pharmacy and physical therapy. Graduate degrees are offered in biomedical sciences, medical laboratory science and physician assistant studies. The campus joins 黑料传送门 South Georgia in Moultrie in helping to meet the healthcare needs of the state. Emphasizing "a whole person" approach to care, 黑料传送门 Georgia focuses on educational excellence, interprofessional education and service to the community. For more information, visit pcom.edu or call 678-225-7500. The campus is also home to the Georgia Osteopathic Care Center, an osteopathic manipulative medicine clinic, which is open to the public by appointment. For more information, visit .
For general media inquiries, please contact the Office of Marketing and Communications at 215-871-6300 or communications@pcom.edu. Visit our media relations page to view contact information for public relations personnel.