Multi-sectoral support from Thomasians in different disciplines contribute in the fight against COVID-19. Among these efforts include varied initiatives to produce and distribute Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) and test booths for the use of frontliners.
With the primary goal of protecting the frontliners from being exposed to the coronavirus, and to address the problem of shortage in personal protective equipment, the UST Faculty of Engineering produced face shields by using 3D printers to print visors to which they attach acetate sheets. Volunteer faculty members take turns in manning the printers, two of which were donated by the Department of Science and Technology and three were donated recently by Eat Bulaga. Donations from the Thomasian community and the UST Alumni Association support the project.
Designer to the stars and celebrities Michael Leyva, a graduate of the College of Tourism and Hospitality Management, designed and produced personal protective equipment (PPE) for the frontliners. The said PPE was created according to the Department of Health requirements. He turned his atelier into a production house to prepare hazmat suits, head covers and washable face masks. In partnership with actress and philanthropist Angel Locsin, Leyva has distributed the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) sets to eight hospitals that include the Philippine General Hospital and the Philippine Lung Center, and facilities in Antipolo City.
Marvin Orias, another designer to the stars used his talent and creativity to design and produce washable PPEs in pastel colors of pink, blue and green, using liquid-resistant textile. Orias, a graduate of Industrial Engineering from the University of Santo Tomas and the UST High School, explained that aside from helping protect frontliners with his PPEs, he would also want to bring a spirit of happiness with his ‘bunny suits.’
Melvin Dave Jordan, a 2nd-year BSBA-Marketing Management student of the College of Commerce, donated 96 hazmat suits to medical frontliners in different parts of Luzon. Initial beneficiaries included the Bulacan Medical Center (Bulacan), VT Maternity Hospital (Marikina), Bauan Doctors General Hospital (Batangas), Mary Johnston Hospital, Inc. (Tondo), and Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center (Manila).
The UST College of Nursing donated personal protective equipment, vitamins and food items to various groups that included hospitals, health centers, frontliners and others.
The Becarios de Santo Tomas, an organization of UST scholars, organized a donation drive that enabled them to give PPEs to the Lung Center of the Philippines, the Philippine General Hospital and the UST Hospital.
The UST Thomasian Alumni Leaders Association (TALA) in cooperation with the Quezon City Lions Club donated five COVID Test Booths to the health departments of Caloocan, Navotas and Valenzuela. These test booths equip the local health teams to increase their testing capabilities in a day, in accordance with the standards set by the Department of Health
Another batch of graduates from the UST College of Architecture, Batch 1985, donated aerosol boxes and N95 masks to hospitals. Aerosol boxes can help confine the virus within the boxes, thus contain its spread when anesthesiologists and other physicians intubate their patients.
Meanwhile, an alumnus of the UST Central Seminary, Fr. John Mi Shen, donated face masks from China and 30 tons of locally purchased rice to be given to the residents of Payatas, and Fairview. The donations were from the listeners in China of Radio Veritas Asia. Prior to this donation, the media outfit also donated 1,500 pieces of face masks to the UST Hospital.
