AKRON, Ohio — Keeping hospital healthcare workers healthy remains critically important as they come into contact with COVID-19 patients. To that end, three Summa Health doctors used out-of-the-box thinking to create an extra layer of protection.
Dr. Eric Espinal, the chief of cardiothoracic surgery, Dr. Thomas Mark, chief of anesthesiology, and Dr. Phillip Khalil, chief of otolaryngology, created a new style of intubation box, which also have holes for doctors to place their arms during a procedure and removable and disposable gloves.
"This virus tends to be particularly lethal and so we're rethinking everything we do on a regular basis and asking ourselves, is that enough?" Espinal told News 5.
As of Wedensday afternoon, Summa Health had 34 patients hospitalized with the coronavirus.
In the COVID-19 world, Dr. Espinal believes more protection is needed when a person has to be intubated, a process in which a breathing tube is inserted before the patient is attached to a ventilator.
"It's possible that the patient can cough and that mucus can be airborne," Dr. Espinal said.
He added that even healthcare workers wearing masks and shields could be at risk if aerosolized particles go under a shield, land on scrubs or get distributed around the room.
Last month, Espinal read an article in the New England Journal of Medicine that described a similar clear, plastic box-- placed over a patient's head-- that was being used by a doctor in Asia during the pandemic.
Espinal thought it was a great idea to guard against cornoavirus spread and reached out to two Ohio companies, Action Precision in Pioneer and Ultra Tech Machinery in Cuyahoga Falls, to see if workers could start manufacturing the protective barriers.
Each company made 50 of the boxes and the costs were covered by the businesses.
"Working with Dr. Eric Espinal to help protect the medical workers caring for critically ill COVID-19 patients is a great honor," said Bob Hagarty, president of Ultra Tech Machinery. "After Dr. Espinal approached me with the idea of creating an intubation box, we dedicated a team of Ultra Tech Machinery employees to begin the manufacturing process."
Many of the boxes have been delivered to hospitals throughout Northeast Ohio to be used in emergency rooms, operating rooms and intensive care units.
Other boxes were delivered to the Ohio National Guard. Governor Mike DeWine's office is coordinating distributing those to hospitals in need, Espinal said.
The doctors also came up with an idea to modify surgical booties to make the sleeves.
"That allows us to introduce instruments that will continue to keep us protected as we work," Espinal said.
Espinal said the companies stand ready to make more boxes, if needed. In the meantime, he's thrilled his version of an intubation box quickly turned into production line, and is providing further protection to frontline workers during a time of uncertainty.
"This is the largest-scale effort that we know of simply because we have a great community here in Northeast Ohio."
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