Saint Joseph University (USJ) and its university hospital Hotel-Dieu announced the adoption of an artificial respirator control device that assists patients in intensive care facilities.
The device was supplied by Lebanese engineer Kousra Sakr through his company I. Network Automation that specializes in the manufacturing of robots for various industrial needs.
That particular respirator device is widely known overseas and, while its parts are unavailable locally, Sakr’s company managed to recreate it locally with parallel components, and manufacture the model.
According to USJ news, Hotel Dieu will move now into testing the device on animals first, which will take a few weeks until production can be started.
The I.Network company revealed that the total cost of the device doesn’t exceed $2,000 while an imported IC ventilator could cost up to $30,000.
However, according to the USJ, the company is offering the design, the manufacturing program, and all technical details free of charge to hospitals and manufacturers that wish to produce it to support the hospitals during this health crisis.
With the increase of coronavirus cases and the limited number of available respirators and medical equipment, Lebanese engineers are stepping up to provide solutions.
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