3 Sep 2021
Ventilator Innovation has cost and life-saving potential
Prana is a medical device that allows four patients to safely share one ventilator when resource-constrained hospitals are overwhelmed.
Prana has huge potential for use in pandemics, natural or manmade disasters, and resource-constrained regions. The non-invasive ventilator ‘splitter’ supports hospitals in crises by equipping them with the capacity to serve overwhelming patient loads without compromising safety, quality, or user experience, making access to healthcare resources affordable for those who need it most. Splitting these non-invasive ventilators at the preventative stage also means it is possible to prevent patients needing critical care and additional hospital resources. Ultimately lives can be saved.
The device was the idea of Product Design Engineering graduates Abhi Ghavalkar and Zach Mudge who came up with the idea after a series of interviews with doctors and respiratory therapists in Ghana, Cambodia, and Mexico, where ventilators are a scarce commodity.
