Cambridge Health Alliance accepting mask donations amid coronavirus pandemic

Paul Yeung/Bloomberg

The Cambridge Health Alliance is accepting mask donations from the public at its Greater Boston hospitals amid the coronavirus pandemic, as frontline health providers nationwide struggle with a shortage of protective gear.

“Like all hospitals during this outbreak of COVID-19, the Cambridge Health Alliance is facing a shortage of medical supplies, including personal protective equipment,” said alliance spokesman David Cecere in an email. “This is an unprecedented and unpredictable crisis, and we are pursuing different avenues to bolster and preserve our supplies so that we can meet the critical need and support our frontline staff.”

Cecere said the alliance is seeking new and unused equipment that can be dropped off any time at the entrances to its hospitals in Cambridge, Everett and Somerville.

Specifically, Cecere said, the alliance is requesting N95 masks normally made by 3M or KC Duckbill, though CHA will accept any brand; paper masks with ties or elastic; and paper protective gowns.

“Items will be delivered to our Central Storeroom, which will inspect and clean them and distribute across our hospitals and primary care centers as needed,” Cecere wrote.

The alliance operates healthcare facilities in Cambridge, Everett, Malden, Somerville and Revere, according to its website. It describes itself as “a vibrant, innovative health system that serves everyone in need."

The CHA is “passionately local,” its site says, with over 140,000 patients who receive “high quality, essential services like primary care, specialty care, hospital care, emergency services, maternity care and behavioral health in convenient neighborhood locations.”

Patients, the site says, also have “seamless access to advanced care for rare or complex conditions at ... Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and Mass. General Hospital for Children (MGHfC).”

In addition, the site says the alliance “operates the nationally accredited Cambridge Public Health Department. It collaborates closely with local governments and non-profits to improve health and reduce barriers to care.”