In its moment of maximum expansion, the new Coronavirus pandemic hit hard the Italian health system: in March 2020 the shortage of high biocontainment stretchers, led to great trouble HEMS (Helicopter Emergency Medical Services).
But new opportunities arise from the health crisis: at the end of September, two Italian companies collaborated with Isovac Products LLC, a private US company in Illinois, to create innovative airborne biocontainment stretchers. These are: at-casinos.com
Elitaliana Spa, the oldest Italian helicopter company based in Fonte di Papa, where the helicopter rescue base is also located for the Emergency network of the city of Rome, operating 24 hours a day,
and Northwall Srl, a company of Castelnovo Monti (Italy), exclusive supplier for Europe of the special US medical device “Capsuls Isovac”.
This is the first and only stretcher for infected people with SARS CoV-2, which has obtained certification as a Class-l medical device, approved by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and by the National Civil Aviation Authority (ENAC) for the transport by helicopter of individuals affected by highly contagious diseases.
It is equipped with airtight enclosures, with vacuum pumps, sensors, coupling systems, sophisticated inlet and outlet filters and sealed access routes for patient treatment.
With the sophisticated negative pressure system, Isovac’s Capsuls Patient Isolation Unit represents an enhanced barrier against viruses such as COVID-19, Ebola, bacteria such as Tuberculosis, also radioactive dust and toxic chemicals, and is particularly suitable for safe transport, both for the patient and also for pilots and health workers on board in any Covid or bacteriological isolation centre.
While inside the capsule, the patient can undergo computerized x-ray imaging procedure (CT) and any type of examination without risk of contamination.
In addition to providing the medical device, Northwall provides training to pilots, nurses and resuscitators doctors with appropriate courses, while Elitaliana made available, in addition to the adaptation of the Agusta Westland AW 169 and AW 139 helicopters for the fast and safe transport of patients in red code, also the Roman base of Fonte di Papa, where the teamwork of technicians and engineers of the two companies has filled the gaps in the national and European health care service, making the new capsules more adaptable and solving space problems.
When not in use, the “capsule” can in fact be placed in a bag crammed into the hold of the helicopters and then, if necessary, be quickly sanitized and decontaminated thanks to products approved by the World Health Organization, without using chemical agents to avoid damaging the sophisticated electronic and digital equipment on board the “Pegaso” helicopters.
Isovac’s Capsuls, the first high bio-containment stretcher that can be used throughout Europe, is already available for HEMS rotary wing aircraft in service in Lazio and Calabria.
Source: AOS
