Job lot of hand cream!

sweaty_betty

Bit of a long-shot!

My baby was in hospital for months after birth and the staff there were fantastic. I'm going to take them some chocolates in, but thought it would be nice to take something else non-edible, hand cream is the obvious choice as hands get really dried out with all the washing/sanitising etc.

Does anyone know of any offers or job lots or places to look for lots of hand creams? I'd like to get plenty as there were so many nurses and I think most of them looked after us!

Tia

jenniewb

That sounds like a really sweet idea, but having known nurses in my time it may be that there is within some departments an ethical limit on the monitary value of what they can accept so make sure even if you do find a really good deal that it doesn't look too generous or they may have to refuse it!
It's also something they may not be able to use when at work as most will have to scrub their hands clean of everything so they are sterile (even if they're in gloves) and no moisturisers are allowed once they have cleaned their hands. But it could be great for after work especially as they'll no doubt have far drier hands than the average.


In terms of sourcing the hand cream, you could try the pound shop but if you wanted to go one step further, you could contact UK brands (eg who may have a personal understanding of how selfless a lot of the NHS workers are) and explain what you want to do and why and ask if they have any special deals. They may not have, but you wont lose anything (apart from typing a few emailed words) by asking.

DigForVictory

^^ hear, hear.
You could also have a chat with a pharmacist and see if you can negotiate a discount on a pallet of 24/36 or whatever.

Bonus delight if you & child design & print or draw special sticky labels?

theoretica

Perhaps a number of small pots so lots of people could take one.
What about talking to local hotels? They might pass you at cost the ones they use, or give you contacts with the suppliers.

squiggles

Poundland have Vaseline 2 in 1 handcream with antibacterial.

http://www.vaseline.co.uk/product/intensive-care/targeted-care/2in1antibac.html

Alice_Walker

It is a lovely thought, but would it not be better to make a donation to a charity of their choice? A basic tube of hand cream isn't going to be the most exciting gift, and will be something they already have if they need it. A gift should be something special, something thoughtful, not an everyday item.

theoretica

I think this is very thoughtful - but small things of nice brands are probably more special than larger basic brands. Even if the staff don't want them, some places collect small size toiletries for patients woud come in without their own.

cazs

Suffering very dry hands where the skin often cracks apart and bleeds I hope I can help by pointing you towards the thickest most effective hand creams of the 20 or so I've tried.
1. Nivea SOS
2. Palmers cocoa butter
3. Garnier 7 days cream

Murphybear

Good idea, I know a lot of nurses say they would like a change from chocs.

What's your budget? Both L'Occitane and Crabtree & Evelyn do sets with about 12 individual hand creams of fabulous fragrances. Web site Escentual have a set of C & E for £20. If you haven't tried them, they are really gorgeous.

ibizafan_2

Crabtree & Evelyn do the best hand creams I've ever found. They smell great and feel really moisturising. I've just bought some online in a sale from their website.

barbiedoll

I work in a hospital and we do have hand cream provided for us. We're encouraged to use it regularly as we wash our hands constantly and it is hypoallergenic and unscented.

It's a lovely thought but please don't buy any perfumed stuff, especially for nurses on a children's ward. Many of the kids will be suffering from eczema/asthma and highly perfumed products can be very irritating. It's not good around babies either.

I know it is a cliche but biscuits and chocolates are appreciated, especially when the staff miss their breaks, sometimes a sugar rush is all that keeps everyone going. And what about a set of nice mugs for tea/coffee? Polystyrene and cardboard cups are horrid, we all like a proper mug for our tea!

But the one thing that every nurse appreciates, is a patient that takes the time to contact the "higher-ups" to inform them that they were happy with their treatment. A letter or email, mentioning staff by name, will be appreciated and remembered long after the biscuits have been eaten!