Senators lend hand to health care workers in coronavirus fight

With a looming shortage of personal protective equipment for health care workers at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) and nearby hospitals, the Ottawa Senators are looking to lend a hand.

On Monday, the Senators announced the Shielding Heroes campaign, aimed at raising $500,000 to provide face shields to those on the front lines of the fight against the coronavirus.

LEO Lab will produce 3,500 face-shield units per week using an HP 3D printer. Each unit costs $12 and contains one frame and three shields, which can be sterilized and used up to four times apiece to help lower costs. The plan is to send 2,000 units to CHEO and 1,500 to other area hospitals each week.

Shielding Heroes already is halfway to its goal, raising $250,000 thanks to Alstom, Claridge Homes, Edelman, Horizant Solutions, HP Canada, Nautical Lands Group, Thistledown Foundation and the Ottawa Senators Foundation.

Anyone wishing to donate to Shielding Heroes can visit the Ottawa Senators Foundation website.