Project C.U.R.E. Helping Fight Coronavirus In U.S. & Developing Countries
CENTENNIAL, Colo. (CBS4) - When the coronavirus hit the U.S., Project C.U.R.E. immediately responded to a call for help from home. The nonprofit, based in Centennial, has distributed nearly 9,000 boxes of personal protective equipment across the country.
Now, the focus has shifted and Project C.U.R.E. is again helping the world's communities most in need.
Project C.U.R.E.'s mission is to "help the helpers" by supplying much needed medical equipment to third world countries. The organization pivoted when the coronavirus crisis hit the U.S. and PPE was in demand here.
"I don't know if we have enough. I don't know if the U.S. has enough." Douglas Jackson, PhD, President/CEO of Project C.U.R.E. made that statement back in March.
Then he focused their efforts, holding PPE supply drives in Denver and other cities and buying items with donations. The nonprofit handled requests nationwide for masks and much more.
"It was gowns, it was gloves, and it was sanitizer," Jackson told CBS4 Health Specialist Kathy Walsh. "We went to the really big hospitals first."
Two months and more than 2 million items later, the focus is on rural hospitals.
"Out in Fort Morgan and Fort Lupton and Sterling," said Jackson. "They're not aligned with the big hospital corporations, so they have a hard time."
Now, requests are coming from Latin America and Africa where the COVID-19 crisis is spreading.
"Over there, they don't have a supply chain on the best days, and now they're facing the worst days," Jackson said.
Jackson said in Nigeria, there are just 169 ventilators for 200 million people. In Somalia and nine other countries in Africa, there are none.
At Project C.U.R.E., they believe until community health becomes a global issue, they will always be needed to bridge the gap.
Project C.U.R.E. depends on donations.
