Supplies and volunteers needed to prepare for COVID-19 “surge”

March 31, 2020 Trevor Montgomery

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, Calif. — Riverside County is seeking urgent medical supply donations and medical volunteers to continue its fight during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to county health officials.

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“The incoming surge is not fake nor a hoax. It is real and we have to be as prepared as possible,” said Riverside County Board Chair and Fourth District Supervisor V. Manuel Perez. “The need for medical volunteers and medical donations is critical at this point. I have heard from many hospitals and they are all concerned about resources and staffing. Your donations and volunteerism will be greatly appreciated.”

The Riverside University Health System (RUHS) created a list for urgent supplies.

Some of those items include: ventilators, cardiac monitors/portable tele-system, masks (including, surgical, N-95 or handmade), personal protective equipment (which includes hoods and face guards, filters), isolation gowns and gloves.

RUHS is also in need of physicians, nurses, pharmacists, assistants and technicians able to volunteer, but only licensed practitioners or students pursuing degrees in any of these areas may be medical volunteers.

A complete list of items and how to donate or volunteer can be found here: https://www.rivcoph.org/coronavirus.

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Look for the donate and volunteer buttons on the right-hand side of the page. RUHS-Public Health Director Kim Saruwatari said the medical supply issue hit every county nationwide. As the region’s hospitals brace for an oncoming surge, the need is critical for supplies.

“We want to thank those businesses and individuals willing to donate and volunteer to help us battle this coronavirus,” Saruwatari said. “The generosity is appreciated – and definitely needed.

We’re all in this fight together. Together as a community, we’ll get through this.”

Submitted by Riverside University Health System

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Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery, 48, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, (the now defunct) Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and Mountain Echo in Shasta County.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.

Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 29 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 16 grandchildren.