Health Cluster Portugal - CovidVentilSupport for remote support on how to operate invasive mechanical ventilators

By: Joana Feijó
Created: 26 May 2020 - 12:05
Updated: 26 May 2020 - 01:05

The effective and safe use of invasive mechanical ventilation equipment, expected to be necessary in about 5% of Covid-19 cases (WHO), requires qualified and trained human resources, in a process that can be long and demanding. In Portugal, the fact that this equipment can be from several suppliers, and the recent acquisitions and / or donations to the National Health Service, makes it difficult to have sufficient qualified and trained health professionals to operate them. With this project, a digital platform for technical support for the operation of these equipments will be created, sustained by clinical specialists in this area. The platform will forward, in a semi-automatic manner, the calls of clinicians who are operating the equipment to the available support physician with the specific skills in that equipment. In a first phase, the initiative will be implemented at Centro Hospitalar Universitário São João and at Hospital de Braga, and may be extended to the entire national territory.

This project is integrated in a set of actions of the HCP, through its thematic network Smart Health Network, to respond to the pandemic. This and other projects, which are already being developed, involve start-ups and national companies, international partners, R&D institutions and hospitals.

The objective is to support the effort and dedication of healthcare professionals in combating COVID-19 by using the know-how, experience and knowledge of HCP associates in the fields of medical technologies and digital health.