NRS Healthcare has donated thousands of pieces of equipment to a charity supporting those affected by the war in Ukraine.

A group of volunteers from across the business spent Saturday 5th November in Bicester, loading much needed items onto a lorry, bound for two military hospitals in the Zaporizhzhia region.

Thanks to donations from Cambridge and Peterborough, Norfolk, Southampton, Bicester, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Lincolnshire, around 860 pieces of equipment including beds, crutches, wheelchairs, rollators and mattresses and hundreds more PPE and medical supplies, will provide aid to those who are injured, have found themselves displaced due to the conflict or for those working around the clock to help those in need.

A large selection of specialist paediatric equipment is also being delivered to a separate location.

Emily Luckie, Clinical Regional Manager for NRS Southern region, organised the collection of equipment with the charity PhysioNet. She said:

“Thank you to all our NRS volunteers, giving up their personal time for such an important cause. Thank you also to PhysioNet for asking us to be involved. I felt such pride last Saturday watching all the weeks of organising come together and our teams working together loading all the equipment onto the lorry and knowing it was going to those in need in Ukraine.”

This is the fourth special consignment of medical and physio equipment that PhysioNet, has sent to Ukraine since the war started earlier this year. The charity, run solely by volunteers, helps people with disabilities overseas.

Mike Freeman, a volunteer and Dartmouth Rotarian, said:

“NRS has been an incredible partner to the Rotary and PhysioNet on our latest Ukraine shipment. At this time, Ukraine is in desperate need of hospital equipment, medical supplies and physio equipment. Although counter-offensives are currently successful, little is reported of the ongoing human struggle of civilians. We have benefitted from NRS’s logistics, workforce, and kit donations, which are no longer suitable for use in the UK. Furthermore, the NRS employees who gave up their Saturday morning to help load the lorry are all much appreciated and applauded for their effort. We couldn’t have done this without you. Thank you, on behalf of PhysioNet, Rotary, and the people of Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine.”

Alongside Emily, those volunteering included Heather Gray and her husband Kevin, Anthony Millard, Anna Walker, Abbie Johnson, Liz Plummer, Samuel Sharp, Maurycy Adamowski, Rob Andrews who drove the forklift, and Trudi Hodges.

Liz, a Customer Service Advisor, who has worked for NRS Healthcare in Aylesbury since July, said:

“Myself, my son Samuel and colleague Maurycy each had our own special reason to help, but we also knew it was for a good cause and would help those in need. I used to work in the care sector and seeing people go without is hard. Samuel is a kind and caring person, who is always happy to help. When he was born he needed much help with equipment that helped him in so many ways. Maurycy’s family are from Poland and he knows many people who have been in a similar situation and so he wanted to be involved. My daughter, who doesn’t work for NRS, but is also very caring, came along as an extra pair of hands and supported where she was able.”

In addition to the items NRS Healthcare donated, the lorry also took a further 100 items collected by the Rotary Clubs of Dartmouth, Knaresborough, Bristol and Saffron Waldon, all of whom sent volunteers to join in with loading the lorry.

For more information about the work that PhysioNet does, or if you would like to find out how to get involved, visit https://physionet.org.uk/.