Cocooned women in Cork use their skills to make vital equipment

WOMEN who are cocooning because of Covid-19 are busy making masks for healthcare workers.

A team of up to ten women are sewing and producing masks after an idea by consultant surgeon Dr Jenny Lynch.

The Fermoy native came up with the idea in after discovering a large amount of cotton belonging to her mother.

Now, a group of women in Cork city are also making the masks, which are then given to nursing homes for use by healthcare workers. 

The volunteers on the project are all cocooning as per public health guidelines, and are filling their time by working on the masks.

Dr Lynch said: "These women are delighted to be doing something while they are cocooning. There has been a re-emergence of the sewing machine!"

She added that the women who are volunteering for the project were prolific sewers, with some having been seamstresses or patchwork quilters.

Dr Lynch said each woman in the receives packs made up with the materials for each mask, including two pieces of cotton, a piece of lining material, elastic and a pipe cleaner.

And she said: "They are fully washable and are not disposable."

* If any nursing homes want to get in touch to order the masks, they can contact Margaret Keane on 086 6066231.