A Portable Negative Pressure Isolation System as a Solution to Minimize Exposure of Health Care Providers to Infectious Pathogens.

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the exposure of many surgeons and healthcare providers (HCPs) to disease given high patient loads and limited availability of negative pressure rooms. For these reasons we pursued the development of a portable patient isolation system (COVIAGE™ by iSolace, Inc.) that can be used to contain patients with respiratory illness and minimize the exposure of HCPs. COVIAGE™ is comprised of a reusable aluminum frame, a disposable thermoplastic polyurethane tent and a HEPA filtration/ventilation system (HVAC) utilizing two inline filters. The efficacy of filtration was tested by comparing particulate concentration inside and outside of the device by an independent third party. Additionally, physician, nursing, and respiratory tasks were performed initially on simulated patients and then on intubated patients in the ICU. The system attained a verified filtration efficiency greater than 99.999% for an average 0.3-µm size particulates. Simulation testing revealed that most common physician, nursing, and respiratory tasks could be completed in the device, including endotracheal intubation. Emergency removal of the device can be accomplished in 8.8 ± 2.8 seconds. The reusable aluminum frame allows for simple attachment to the bed, and adaptability to different types and sizes of beds/stretchers. An emergency use authorization was granted by the FDA. The device created results in a portable negative pressure isolation system that can be placed over the patient's bed to contain aerosols during high aerosol generating procedures, transportation of patients or for total patient care in environments where negative pressure rooms are not available.

Helmet Modification to PPE With 3D Printing During the COVID-19 Pandemic at Duke University Medical Center: A Novel Technique.

Care for patients during COVID-19 poses challenges that require the protection of staff with recommendations that health care workers wear at minimum, an N95 mask or equivalent while performing an aerosol-generating procedure with a face shield. The United States faces shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE), and surgeons who use loupes and headlights have difficulty using these in conjunction with face shields. Most arthroplasty surgeons use surgical helmet systems, but in the current pandemic, many hospitals have delayed elective arthroplasty surgeries and the helmet systems are going unused. As a result, the authors have begun retrofitting these arthroplasty helmets to serve as PPE. The purpose of this article is to outline the conception, design, donning technique, and safety testing of these arthroplasty helmets being repurposed as PPE.

Focused Ethnographic Examination of Barriers to Use of Long-Acting Injectable Antipsychotics.

OBJECTIVE: The authors designed this project to identify barriers to using long-acting formulations of antipsychotics. METHODS: The authors used a focused ethnographic approach. Patients, psychiatrists, nurses, therapists and administrators were interviewed about barriers to use of long-acting injectable (LAI) antipsychotics at six facilities in New York State, as were representatives from insurance firms, a pharmaceutical company, and a national professional organization. Interviews were conducted and analyzed by a central team not affiliated with the institutions. RESULTS: Interviews were obtained with 23 patients, 16 psychiatrists, three nurses, 23 therapists, 14 administrators, four insurers, one representative from a pharmaceutical industry, and one representative from a national organization. Major barriers identified from the interviews included restricting discussions about LAI medication to only patients with nonadherence or repeated hospitalizations; inadequate education efforts with patients about LAI antipsychotics; inadequate support for patients making medication decisions; lack of communication within the treatment team about issues relevant to use of LAI formulations by patients; therapists' limited knowledge about LAI antipsychotics, which restricted their role in supporting patients making treatment decisions; psychiatrist concerns about the pharmacologic properties of LAI formulations; lack of clinic infrastructure to support LAI prescriptions; and payer concerns about whether the immediate costs of LAI administration would translate into later potential cost benefits. CONCLUSIONS: Effective shared decision making about use of LAI antipsychotics requires that patients receive accurate information and support for their decision making. The training needs and administrative support requirements of all team members should be considered to provide patients with the information and support required.

Sustaining the success of medical device innovation.

Paul Fearis is CEO of Clinvue, Brandon Craft is COO of Clinvue. Clinvue is medical device innovation consultancy specializing in Insight Informed Innovation in the medical industry. Paul and Brandon are also lecturers in innovation for the 'Center for Bioengineering, Innovation & Design' Masters course in Bioengineering Innovation & Design at the Johns Hopkins University, and guest lecturers at Rice University and Virginia Tech.