Jordan Fields – Gatekeeper for St. Louis Health Equipment Lending Program

November 10, 2016…When you call the St. Louis Health Equipment Lending Program (St. Louis HELP) at 314 567 4700, you get a recording for call-backs or – live and in person -- Jordan Fields.

Jordan, age 25, is St. Louis HELP’s distribution manager. He handles all calls from people asking for free loans of home medical equipment, plus all calls from people who want to donate equipment to the nonprofit group, which loans almost all kinds of home medical equipment to anyone – for free.

“I receive all requests for equipment loans and for donations of equipment, and I schedule all appointments for people to pick up the equipment at our warehouse in Olivette,” says Jordan, who lives in Overland.

“I love my job because I love helping people in general. I really like working with people who visit St. Louis HELP to borrow equipment or donate it. I treat everyone like I would treat my grandmother.”

“And I love working with other staff members and our volunteers. We’re like a family.”

Jordan works about 35 hours a week handling calls from his desk at St. Louis HELP’s warehouse, or responding to calls from his home. He has responded to 11,531 incoming calls so far this year. By this time last year, he’d handled 11,750. He typically handles between 50 and 100 calls per day, and the related follow up.

St. Louis HELP staff and volunteers clean, rebuild and revitalize donated medical equipment before making it available for loans.

“Our lending warehouse is open for equipment pick-ups and donation drop-offs from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Wednesdays and Saturdays. When the warehouse is open, lots of people come in with appointments, and some people just show up without an appointment.”

“It can get real busy – there’s never a dull moment.”

When Jordan began working at St. Louis HELP in 2013, he didn’t have transportation to get to and from work at the warehouse. So, rain or shine, he walked to the warehouse from his home a couple of miles away.

“I don’t consider this a job – I consider it a Godsend,” he says. “The people I work with are great… the people we meet are great…and St. Louis HELP is an organization that really helps people.”

St. Louis HELP is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that loans home health equipment to any person including those temporarily disabled by injury, illness or surgery; those awaiting insurance company approval; those whose own equipment is being repaired; visitors to St. Louis who can’t transport their own equipment; and terminally ill persons.

Items available for free loans include manual and power wheelchairs, electric hospital beds, shower chairs, canes, crutches, walkers, grab bars, elevated toilet seats, portable commodes, lift chairs, seating cushions, back supports, folding ramps and other devices.

The organization recently expanded its warehouse to 7,000 square feet to accommodate increasing requests from people and families in metro St. Louis for free loans of revitalized home health equipment that the non-profit organization provides.

Call 314 567 4700 or see the website http://www.stlhelp.org.

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