UAE Researchers Develop Ventilators for COVID-19 Patients

Abu Dhabi, MINA – Researchers of Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) are working to develop and produce cheaper ventilators with only 2 percent of current market costs.

The effort is to meet the needs of medical equipment in the midst of a global pandemic of COVID-19, given the high demand for such equipment.

The expert team aims to launch a prototype in less than two weeks to mass produce ventilators.

Director of the Medical Engineering Innovation Center of Khalifa University, Cesare Stefanini, said the number of intensive care places and mechanical ventilators in hospitals is a fraction of what might be needed in the coming weeks when this pandemic situation develops around the world.

“Our plan must be very aggressive. We aim to develop prototype work in less than two weeks, in addition to designing mass production units. We have all the theoretical and design expertise in our team, especially in the prototyping phase, “Stefanini said as stated by the UAE Embassy for Indonesia in Jakarta received by MINA on Thursday, April 9.

The UAE government reported on Wednesday that COVID-19 positive patients reached 2,659, with an additional 300 positive patients in the past 24 hours.

Currently, UAE has conducted nearly 540,000 tests, about one for every 18 people in the country, and more than twice the number that was carried out at the beginning of the month. UAE continues to do more testing than other countries.

Efforts in the field of education, through the UAE’s distance learning platform, Madrasas, currently serve 2.5 million people throughout the Arab world, three times more than before the COVID-19 crisis began. With more than 5,000 educational videos offered, this platform complements the UAE distance learning initiative launched on March 22, 2020.

Etihad Airways will partner with Australian company Elenium Automation to test new technology that can detect ill tourists, including those who have early symptoms of COVID-19. The system aims to track the temperature, heart rate, and breathing rate of passengers as they pass through check-in desks, storage areas, and security checkpoints.

Etihad announced it would add new flights from Abu Dhabi to Melbourne and Amsterdam. Etihad continues to operate special flights to Seoul, Singapore, Manila and Jakarta.

Aid for COVID-19 War

As a solidarity action, the UAE has also provided 10 tons of aid to Italy, 13 tons of aid to Kazakhstan, and 10 tons of aid to Colombia in the war against COVID-19. The aid in the form of hundreds of thousands of pieces of personal protective equipment will help more than 30,000 health workers in three countries.

Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said his ministry was currently experiencing a phase that could only be described as a war against invisible enemies carried out by their medical personnel.

“The personal protective equipment provided by the UAE to Italy is our weapon in this battle. We consider this movement to manifest solidarity in practice and assistance in the field. Italy will never forget the countries that support it during this difficult period, which is not only a health crisis but also an economic and social crisis, “concluded Di Maio. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)