The Department of Health revealed that scientists from the University of the Philippines’ National Institutes for Health (UP-NIH) are busy developing a more affordable ventilator that could be of use amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
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Ventilators are essential in the treatment of COVID-19 as severe cases utilize them to aid patients in breathing. However, the Philippines currently has a limited 1,263 ventilators across the country, with only 153 in Metro Manila.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said this Wednesday that UP-NIH is nearing completion of the ventilator’s design but declined to give further details.
“Hopefully kapag lumabas po iyong kanilang pinag-aralan na ito at ginagawa, makakuha na tayo ng marami at mas mura po ito,” she said.
[Hopefully, when the ventilator they are studying and making comes out, we can get additional and cheaper units.]
UP-NIH is also responsible for the first Philippine-made test kits for COVID-19, which are able to yield results in just 2 hours.
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