BUCKET & BIKE TO SAVE LIVES
Doctors build backyard ventilators to help third world countries fight virus
TWO Gold Coast doctors have built DIY ventilators in the hope they can help thousands of people in third world countries fight epidemics such as coronavirus.
Dr Sam Canning (main photo) and Dr Tom Challenger (inset) created their ventilators for $300 or from bucket and bike “scraps” for a fraction of the $50,000 it can cost for high-end machines.
They were both moved by the harrowing scenes across the world as cities struggled to find enough ventilators to stop people dying.
“I remember hearing on the BBC some third world countries of 10 million people with access to only two ventilators,” Dr Canning says.
“I thought, these people have absolutely no hope, so I wanted to produce something useful with the bare minimum it would take to keep someone alive.”
BRIANNA MORRIS-GRANT
A GOLD Coast doctor has invented a $300 ventilator he says will help save lives during coronavirus-type epidemics.
Prominent GP and past Citizen of the Year Dr Tom Challenger began working on the low-cost ventilator when he saw the shortage of $25,000-$50,000 machines worldwide.
The ventilators, used in intensive care units, give COVID-19 patients time to fight the disease by keeping them breathing.
But health officials warned of a critical shortage as the number of coronavirus cases rose. Dr Challenger said there were only five official producers of the machines worldwide.
“You could see immediately when there was the peak (of infections) in China what the issue was, it’s that there’s not enough ventilators,” he said.
“I talked to my colleagues in China and in England and they’re going through absolute hell. Someone who’s 65 and on a ventilator will get replaced with (someone younger), it’s illogical.
“If that was your grandma, you’re gonna be pretty pissed off. And what are we (doctors) here for?
“We’re not here to make money, we’re here to help people.”
Dr Challenger believes his ventilator designs, one mechanical and one electronic, could be made for $200-$300.
The ventilator pumps air into a patient’s lungs via a standard hand pump and can use a variety of face masks.
“If you go back 50 years we didn’t have all these bells and whistles, we made rudimentary simple stuff that worked,” Dr Challenger said.
“When I started I rang a lot of anaesthetists and found what they thought was important, then I hired some mechanical engineers.
“We’ve been going back again and again to quite a few senior doctors to make sure what we’ve got works.”
Asked by the Bulletin to look at the $300 design, Gold Coast Medical Association President Dr Philip Morris said: “It looks like it may have a role in third world countries that have limited finances and need a cheap version of (a ventilator),” he said.
“If it is safe and effective then it would be great for countries that are going to be needing ventilators on a large scale.”
For more information about the ventilator and how to access the design visit challengermission.com
WE’VE BEEN GOING BACK AGAIN AND AGAIN TO QUITE A FEW SENIOR DOCTORS TO MAKE SURE WHAT WE’VE GOT WORKS.
DR TOM CHALLENGER