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Cook Children’s asking for donations of aluminum crutches amid shortages

A pair of aluminum crutches rests against a white wall.
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Cook Children's is asking the public to donate new or gently used crutches.

A global shortage of aluminum is causing hospitals like Cook Children’s to appeal to the public for help.

Brady Gendke, vice president of operations at Cook Children’s Home Health, is requesting donations of new or gently used crutches.

Gendke said they have a two-month supply at the moment, and are not suffering from a shortage. But he said they’re taking preventative measures. Cook Children’s will be accepting donations of crutches until Friday, November 19.

"It is a national shortage, you are seeing hospitals across the United States doing something similar to this and while we have not faced any shortages as of yet,” he said. “We are being notified of the back orders that are coming, and so we want to get ahead of the curve sooner than later."

Gendke said the sizes they use the most are the youth size, for people that are 4-foot-6 to 5-foot-1, and adults from 5-foot-2 to 5-foot-10. But he said Cook Children’s will accept donations of any size.

The donated crutches will go through safety inspections and sanitation processes to make sure each pair is safe to use.

Donations can be brought to the main entrance of Cook Children's medical center in Fort Worth, weekdays from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Nov. 19.

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Got a tip? Email Galilee Abdullah at Gabdullah@KERA.org.

Galilee Abdullah is an arts reporter.