Contact: Katryn Conlin, Communications Director
[email protected], 651-385-6364
For Immediate Release
MSC Southeast helps out local hospitals with equipment and supplies in response to Covid-19 pandemic
(Winona and Red Wing, MN) April 15, 2020 -- In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, on-campus instruction at MSC Southeast has been suspended for the remainder of Spring semester. Nursing and health care coursework has been adapted to online and distance learning opportunities.
That means the nursing simulation labs at the college, which closely represent real hospital settings, aren't in use right now. The equipment in these labs doesn't just look real - it is real - and it could be used to help real patients at area hospitals.
Minnesota State College Southeast's Winona campus nursing department recently loaned ten hospital beds and eight nightstands to Winona Health. The college also donated supplies of medical-grade personal protective equipment, including 29 pairs of goggles and 3000 gloves.
In addition, 68 masks were donated to Winona County, and an agreement is in place that the Tandeski Center can be used as a medical facility if needed.
On April 10, Mayo Clinic Health System in Red Wing picked up equipment from the Red Wing campus, including ten hospital beds, six nightstands, eight swing bed trays, and six IV poles.
MSC Southeast Dean of Health Jennifer Eccles noted that the entire college worked to create an inventory of supplies. "It wasn't just the nursing program. Staff and faculty throughout the college searched cupboards and closets for personal protective equipment," she said. "We found medical equipment, goggles, masks, and gloves in classrooms and labs including auto body, biomedical, chemistry, cosmetology, medical lab technology, radiography, welding, guitar repair and building -- even the bookstores. We are ready to donate or loan as needed."
MSC Southeast is grateful to have the opportunity to help out in this crisis situation.
Photo caption: Maintenance staff from MSC Southeast's Red Wing campus helped load hospital beds and equipment onto a truck for delivery to Mayo Clinic Health System in Red Wing.
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About Minnesota State College Southeast
Minnesota State College Southeast is a two-year technical and community college that prepares students for a lifetime of learning by providing education for employment, skill enhancement, retraining, and transfer, to meet the needs of students and the community. The Winona campus opened in 1949, merging with the Red Wing campus in 1992 and updating its name to Minnesota State College Southeast in 2016 with the change of mission to offer both technical training and the associate of arts degree. Minnesota State College Southeast is a member of Minnesota State. For more information, visit www.southeastmn.one.