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WHEREAS, hospitals and clinics in under-served communities often lack the supplies and equipment necessary to provide even basic care to their patients, resulting in needless suffering and deaths; and,
WHERAS, the US healthcare industry generates a staggering amount of medical surplus which, without intervention, is destined to pile up in our landfills; and,
WHEREAS, twenty-five years ago in Pittsburgh, Global Links became the first organization in the country to tackle these issues by recovering and strategically reusing no longer needed hospital supplies and delivering them to resource-poor communities; and,
WHEREAS, Global Links works with hospitals and health systems to provide more than $180 million in critical medical aid to those in need, while preventing some 300 tons of medical surplus and supplies from entering landfills and waste streams; and,
WHEREAS, Global Links volunteers contribute nearly 12,000 hours of service each year sorting, repairing, and preparing supplies for reuse and shipment; and,
WHEREAS, Global Links shares medical supplies and equipment with public health institutions located in the most vulnerable communities in Latin America and the Caribbean, including the six poorest nations in the Western Hemisphere: Honduras, Haiti, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Guyana, and Bolivia; and,
WHEREAS, additionally, Global Links directs medical supplies free of charge to western Pennsylvania nonprofit organizations, including Operation Safety Net, Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, and the Cancer Caring Center; and,
WHEREAS, Global Links is celebrating its 25th anniversary on November 1, 2014 with a Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebration.
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NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Council of the City of Pittsburgh does hereby recognize and commend Global Links for their innovative model of recovery and reuse that connects these two social problems in a way that helps to solve both; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESO...
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