|
 The Athens man ran his printer in his home office
almost nonstop for a month to create more than 1,300 pieces of
personal protective equipment for local health-care workers. He
donated most of the plastic items — 800 “ear-savers” and 100 face
shields — to Memorial Health System.
“Making any sort of difference is what matters,” said Primm, 31, who
works as a technical support representative for a banking technology
company.
Primm said he used designs that he downloaded from the National
Institutes of Health website. He said he spent $375 on materials,
which included the clear plastic he attached to plastic headbands
produced on the 3D printer to complete the face shields.
Ear-savers make it more comfortable for health-care workers to wear
medical-grade masks for hours at a time. Face shields are used, in
combination with N95 masks, to protect workers in certain situations
as they care for patients infected with the COVID-19 virus or
suspected of being infected.
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Erin Bromley, Memorial Health System’s administrator
for supply chain, said workers caring for patients have been
grateful for the 3D-printed PPE donated by Primm and other
individuals and organizations in central Illinois and beyond. About
5,000 3D-printed pieces of PPE have been donated to the system
during the pandemic, she said.
“When a community member can help create and manufacture what we
need, it’s extremely helpful to take the stress off of that supply
chain,” Bromley said. “We’ve had a lot of departments ask to send
them the ear-savers, so they are popular with the employees.”
[Dean Olsen | Media Relations
Consultant | Communications | Memorial Health System] |
