Nurses and surgical technicians from Children's Hospital of Michigan, based in Detroit, are repurposing surgical wraps to help the homeless, according to a WXYZ news report.
Inspired by a New Jersey operating room team, Jennifer Lund, RN, began collecting the blue surgical wraps to use as sleeping mats.
Nurses take surgical wraps that have been used to protect sterile instruments during surgery to assemble mats that rolls up and have space for a pillow.
"We were throwing away these sheets and adding to the landfills on a daily basis, and now we found a useful purpose for them," Ms. Lund said.
The group of nurses and their mothers call themselves the "Surgical Suite Warm Heart Warriors." They plan to donate the mats to local organizations that help the homeless, including the Motor City Mitten Mission.
"A lot of the people living on the street, they're literally sleeping on the concrete or a sewer grate with steam coming up," Gail Marlow, executive director of Motor City Mitten Mission, told WXYZ. "Any kind of barrier of protection to help with that is going to be helpful. I'm anxious to see them."