Nineteen hospital beds and other equipment from the Gateway Community College  nursing and allied health labs have been loaned out to Bridgeport Hospital to help establish a 5,280-square-foot auxiliary field hospital in a parking lot on the hospital campus.

The field hospital contains 32 isolated bedrooms or bays, ventilators and “all the equipment and capabilities” associated with rooms in the main hospital, said John Cappiello, Bridgeport Hospital’s media relations coordinator. Sacred Heart University and the University of Bridgeport also contributed beds and equipment to the effort, he said.

The field unit, which is composed of tarpaulin-like plastic sheets attached to a steel framework, is located directly in front of the hospital in an outpatient parking lot on Grant Street Plaza.

The temporary field hospital will only be used if and when a surge of Covid-19 patients  exceeds the capacity of the main hospital, Cappiello said. It has already been inspected and approved by the state Department of Public Health.

“We are responding to this crisis in every way we possibly can,” said Thomas Coley, Acting President of GCC and Shoreline-West Regional President. “After donating our safety supplies, we found that there was even more we could do to support the medical community. We were  happy to assist with the field hospital and we are now hosting Yale New Haven Hospital staff on the GCC campus to on-board and train new nurses and staff to meet the ever-increasing need for more medical support. We are all in this together."

In all, Gateway contributed 19 hospital beds and mattresses with attached IV poles, a stretcher with an IV pole, 19 three-drawer side table on wheels, 19 over-bed tables on wheels, a wheelchair, a linen cart and other equipment to the field hospital.

“The donated equipment, which comes from Gateway’s Allied Health and Nursing program, will remain at the field hospital as long as the auxiliary unit remains viable,” said Sheila B. Solernou, the health and nursing program’s division director. The loan agreement between the two parties extends through July 31, but can be amended, she said.

“We are most grateful for Gateway’s help and support during this very difficult time,” Cappiello said.