TORONTO -- An Ontario emergency room doctor is harnessing the power of team work and creativity to keep his colleagues safe from COVID-19.
To help some patients breathe when they are in hospital, a tube will be inserted in their throat to increase oxygen flow.
Dr. Kaveh Kavoosi is an emergency room physician in Alliston, north of Toronto. He said the procedure can put doctors, nurses and respiratory therapists at greater risk of contracting the virus.
“The challenge is when that’s happening, the virus which is sitting in the secretions of the lungs, has the highest risk of coming up to us,” Kavoosi told CTV News Toronto.
Inspired by a box designed in Taiwan that goes over the patient’s head to contain the spray, Kavoosi is creating what he’s calling a protective intubation and resuscitation cube (PIRC).
He posted his idea online for help to make the cube and within hours One Concept Auto in Toronto responded.
“It’s a simple concept if you really think about it. We built speaker boxes so we have previous experience,” auto mechanic Alex Labao, from the shop located near Keele Street and Rogers Road, said.
Right now the box costs about $500 to make and is put together by cutting pieces of acrylic and using a 3D printer.
“It feels great to be part of something that could help in the time of need. It’s definitely a good feeling,” Labao said.
Kavoosi has given a handful of prototypes to hospitals around the Greater Toronto Area and wants input to tweak the design so no virus particles will be able to escape the box.
He wants to follow Canadian guidelines and says innovation is key during a pandemic evolving quickly. If his cube or another tool can help — that’s what is important, Kavoosi said.
“There’s an element of human collaboration that’s very empowering and it can encourage others to be reaching into other industries as well, to support one another so we can all get through this, to honour that we are all in this together. Truly stepping up in the face of adversity,” Kavoosi said.
