San Leandro nonprofit provides medical items for Nepal quake victims
SAN LEANDRO, Calif. (KGO) -- A nonprofit in San Leandro that collects discarded materials from hospitals and manufacturers is busy sorting through the items to send as much as they can to victims of the Nepal earthquake.
The images of the damage from the Nepal earthquake are stunning. Seeing the destruction has inspired many people to help the victims in Nepal. Some are giving money while others are donating time.
PHOTOS: Inside the aftermath of the Nepal earthquake
At a nonprofit in San Leandro, volunteers have a ready-made way to help. The group, called MedShare, collects materials from hospitals or manufacturers that were discarded because they're either obsolete, expired, or replaced with newer models.
READ MORE: How you can help Nepal quake victims
It's like a Home Depot of medical equipment. Everything there is used, usable, and would have been going to a landfill. What does that tell us about waste in the medical industry?
"Why would you let it go to a landfill when people that desperately need it can use it?" asked volunteer Dr. Barry Penner.
MedShare Executive Director Andrew Pines adds, "I think we live in a throwaway culture in the United States. I don't think it's any different than our cellphones and our plastic water bottles and everything else that we waste."
VIDEO: Bay Area residents return home after Nepal quake
Pines is a former investment banker who specialized in the medical field. Nothing makes him happier than photos that arrived Tuesday from an orthopedic doctor in Nepal. They show a shipment from here, already helping there.
"We're all brothers and sisters all across the world," he said. "We have a very small health care family, if you can call it that here in the U.S. We're all part of the same human family and those are our brothers and sisters and when they're in need, it is the least we can do."
Gesturing to one of the devices, volunteer Nassim Nouri said, "This can each one of these things can save a life. Really, it's that big a deal. And look how easy it is.
Click here to find out how you can help the victims in Nepal, and click here for full coverage on the devastating quake.
