If you can run 2 people on a single vent and it works, why are you trying to break out supplies that you may not be able to utilize later because you went to a single vent per person? NY is facing a shortage, they are trying to make their resources go as far as possible while still having some in reserve because they know a massive wave is coming.
Just received from one of our national Pulmonary societies.
begin message:
Urgent Help Needed in NYC Intensive Care Units
Hospital systems in New York City are overwhelmed with patients suffering poor COVID-19 prognoses who require intensive and urgent care. The situation is dire — the city is running low on ICU-trained physicians.
If you are an ICU-trained physician outside of New York City and can volunteer to support this worsening situation before it affects other areas, please contact Dr. Doreen Addrizzo-Harris at Doreen.addrizzo@nyulangone.org. New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo can provide same-day approval on all credentialing and licensing, provided that you are board certified in critical care and have a valid driver’s license from another state.
Thank you for lending your skills and support to colleagues and patients in grave need.
Nobody said NYS was out of ventilators.... but NYC is getting close. that was a stupid article.
Re: Columbia doing the human ventipede, per my friend they only did that to test and see if it was feasible. They are not out of vents last time I heard.
However, the problem with "2 patients 1 vent" is that you basically need both of them to be of similar size/weight and to have similar/identical ventilator requirements. This isn't easy, especially because ventilation requirements can change over time. @ccmdfd can comment more specifically than I can.
Ken
BBI: ...”you better not forget the safe word because shit's about to get weird”...
revchuck38: ...”mo' ammo is mo' betta' unless you're swimming or on fire.”
From my post: "Short version all the models they have from CDC etc for peak wave of people needing medical intervention suggest they will need that many vents."
There were a few others they mentioned specifically doing projections but CDC name was only one I recognized & recall.
You can find Cuomo's conferences on ABC7NY & many other YouTube channels.
Risks are per above - basically, you need patients who are effectively identical in their need for mechanical ventilation, which can change over time. Too much PEEP/tidal volume can cause barotrauma, too little and you won't effectively oxygenate the patient. Probably other considerations that I am not aware of as well.
[ramble]
Been working supply base to source PPE past few weeks. Some success, some fail. Biggest problem is logistics. I can find supply, but the first hopeful news (still verifying) I heard on being able to move things in bulk with a booked schedule was less than an hour ago.
Been able to move some stuff and help some folks on a small scale, but my frustration on cargo limits (and stories of shipments gone missing) had my anxiety boiling. 10 days ago an express package took 5 days. Today it's taking 10 days. Too long! Lost my shit earlier in the week and started making calls and shaking trees.
Got in touch with <redacted>.gov 2 days ago through an old colleague. Working on getting integrated with their process. I was surprised that I was being asked intelligent questions and there were already boots on the ground doing source quals. Blood pressure down 30 points, but still high.
Got a note this morning with an offer to spend $1M on masks for donation to NYC. No pressure.
Feels like we are on our own for Vents. When every bent of media and POTUS is still calling it some version of "Chinese Virus", there are limits to what they will be willing to do for you. Working some angles but not very hopeful. Praying for GM and others to pull off a win. I have family in NYC and they are rightly afraid.
I know we have some pilots here... If anyone has the ability to fly an aircraft capable of reaching Shanghai, I'd like to get a basic cost analysis for that. Aircraft, fuel, fees, crew, and all the other stuff I don't know to ask. I can handle export/import. Ideally, something with minimum cargo capacity of a 20' container, about 30 CBM. I need a backup plan if air cargo doesn't work.
Down about 8 pounds now. Not hungry, force myself to eat at least 2 meals/day. Hydration pretty good, but fell off the wagon yesterday. Climbing back on. Still exercising. Spend a lot of time on the phone pacing with frustration. Check in here when I can... I sure would like to see better news, but thanks for the reality at least. I'd feel better if I could drive over there to pick stuff up.
Was pacing my yard yesterday and had a thought. At least i could go in the yard or take a walk. Imagine all the folks in Asia that can't leave their small apartments filled with family. Then I thought about Manhattan and Chicago. And the kid at Kroger that's going to pick my to go order tomorrow (hopefully tomorrow).
Thanks for listening... Time to eat something. Stay safe.
Corey... thinking of you. Wishing you strength. [/ramble]
"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." - Thomas Jefferson, Virginia Constitution, Draft 1, 1776
@Redhat regardless of how many vents they have they are useless without the skilled personnel to run them. Keeping someone alive on a vent is not a plug and play test.
Even if you have enough skilled people you need enough PPE to keep them safe while doing it.
You were a CATM guy so let’s put this in perspective.
You have 50 belt feds for base defense. Each needs a crew of 2. You have 70 airmen but only 50 know how to run a belt fed and you are in a CBRNE environment with only 30 sets of MOPP gear ... so 50 guns becomes 15 effective gun crews.
Last edited by HCM; 03-27-2020 at 02:39 PM.