A VOLUNTEER group spear-headed by a Wyre Forest patient with multiple chronic conditions has donated thousands of pounds worth of PPE visors to Worcestershire's NHS.

ProjectTOM was founded by Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Trust patient WaiLo Li, who was born in British Hong Kong and raised in Wyre Forest.

WaiLo suffers with complex regional pain syndrome and deep-infiltrating stage four endometriosis - two of the most painful conditions according to the NHS.

Kidderminster Shuttle: ProjectTOM has donated £5,000 worth of PPE visors to Worcestershire hospital staffProjectTOM has donated £5,000 worth of PPE visors to Worcestershire hospital staff

The ProjectTOM x 3P Innovation partnership has donated nearly 1,000 visors, worth around £5,000, to the trust, which runs Kidderminster Hospital and Worcestershire Royal, to help staff in their ongoing fight against coronavirus.

WaiLo Li, who has co-ordinated the project despite living with constant pain and bereavement herself, said: “We have asked everyone to start with their own networks wherever they might be in the world.

"Everyone can do something – no act of kindness is too small. This has been a true team effort – we’re all simply part of the Global Covid Volunteers Army.

“Massive thanks to all those that contributed in the battle against Covid-19 – from manufacturers to pro-bono couriers, our amazing volunteers, as well as those who support our online anti-racism campaign, calling for people to be kind, be an ally and stand up to bullies.”

This is the largest donation ever made by the partnership, which has also provided more than 3,300 high-quality PPE visor guards to GP surgeries, clinics, carers, police, schools, nursing homes, hospices and crematoriums across the UK.

ProjectTOM volunteers across the country have been engaging in acts of kindness in response to the pandemic - leaving thank you notes for unsung heroes, providing hundreds of home-cooked meals and care packages for the NHS, elderly and vulnerable out-of-pocket, and launching an online petition against racism in light of increased hate crimes against East Asians in the UK since the coronavirus outbreak.

Matthew Hopkins, chief executive of Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “Our staff across all our hospitals and health and care services in Worcestershire are doing a magnificent job in working to put patients first through one of the most challenging periods in the history of the NHS.

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"This includes frontline staff working under tremendous pressure looking after coronavirus patients and also those working tirelessly behind the scenes to support them.

“We are extremely grateful to WaiLo and ProjectTOM for this incredibly generous donation of PPE.

"This is a huge morale boost for our staff who are working day in day out to provide the best possible care for our patients.”

Jason Levy, from Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Charity, said: “We are hugely grateful for the incredible support from WaiLo and the team at ProjectTOM.

“They have helped us to maintain sustainable supplies of PPE, that has been essential to ensuring Trust staff remain safe and enabling them to provide the highest possible care for patients.”