St. Luke’s, Lehigh University collaboration leads to intelligent, life-saving invention. BETHLEHEM, PA. - Among tales of hope, generosity and togetherness, the COVID-19 pandemic has also given rise to an incredible feat of ingenuity - the invention of the "Bug Zapper" to sterilize masks. As hospitals and different entrance-line organizations jumped to secure large portions of life-saving supplies and personal protective tools (PPE), there has additionally been the necessity to establish quicker, extra efficient ways to wash and sterilize these objects, particularly the coveted N95 masks. St. Luke’s University Health Network anesthesiologist, Christopher Roscher, MD, anticipated the necessity and an thought began to form. "It grew to become clear that PPE provides would change into limited as the virus progressed," he says. The St. Luke’s Sterile Processing Department, or SPD, is the place where all surgical and bug zapper for backyard medical instruments are despatched to be meticulously cleaned, sanitized and packaged for reuse. It’s a behind-the-scenes function that's a vital part of the well being care system. "On any given day, we're processing many, many items right here at our hospital in Bethlehem," states Taylor Bennett, bug zapper for backyard St. Luke’s Network Director of Sterile Processing.

"But with the present scenario, there may be an overwhelming need to course of our employees’ PPE each day. For Dr. Roscher, a mild went on - actually and figuratively. "I had been doing non-public research about finding ways to decontaminate masks for reuse, and peer-reviewed literature instructed that, in a pandemic, UV-C gentle could possibly be a suitable strategy to sterilize masks," he says. UV-C is a particular vary of UV, or ultra-violet, mild and has been proven to deactivate viruses and different pathogens by causing adjustments in their DNA. Through a mutual contact, Dr. Roscher got in contact with Nelson Tansu, PhD, Lehigh University’s Director and Endowed Chair of its Center for Photonics and Nanoelectronics (CPN). "What St. Luke’s was in search of was a excessive-throughput sterilization system," mentioned Dr. Tansu. The two organizations joined forces by means of a sequence of Zoom conferences and a whole bunch of emails, to design, fabricate, install and test the machine - all within a matter of two weeks - and all whereas sustaining social distancing protocols.

The end outcome: a technique to successfully and effectively sterilize 200 masks each 8 minutes! The "Bug Zapper" in motion. "Our existing models weren't designed for giant-scale use. They might only sterilize about 30 masks at a time," acknowledged Eric Tesoriero, DO, anesthesiologist for St. Luke’s and a collaborator on the project. The unit, engineered by Lehigh college students and employees and assembled at St. Luke’s by biomedical engineer Jay Johnson, has been affectionally named the "bug zapper for backyard Zapper" not only due to its appearance, however because of its COVID-killing properties. "It is unbelievable that this challenge moved at such a fast pace," remarks Dr. Tansu. The group ranged from PhDs to MDs and even included an unexpected contributor - Axel Tansu, Dr. Tansu’s adolescent son. Actually, it was Axel’s contribution that allowed the unit to have such a high-throughput rate. "Our authentic design was cylindrical in form, to make sure even publicity of the light on all surfaces," explains Dr. Tansu.

"Axel got here to me and said, ‘Dad, what about an octagon? ’ And positive enough, he was proper. A patent to guard the team’s mental design has been filed. And a celebration for the collaborators to fulfill, in-individual, will be deliberate once it's secure to take action. Until then, the Bug Zapper will probably be exhausting at work, helping to guard the frontline employees at St. Luke’s and beyond. This, like so many different tales, offers a ray of hope through the pandemic - showcasing that the human thoughts and spirit can overcome something - particularly when working together for an excellent trigger. Afterall, because the well-known philosopher Plato understood thousands of years ago, necessity is the mother of invention. Founded in 1872, St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) is a completely integrated, bug zapper for backyard regional, non-profit community of greater than 15,000 workers providing providers at 11 hospitals and bug zapper for backyard 300 outpatient sites. With annual internet income greater than $2 billion, Zappify Bug Zapper the Network’s service space contains eleven counties: Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, Bucks, Carbon, Montgomery, Monroe, indoor cordless bug zapper zapper Schuylkill and Luzerne counties in Pennsylvania and Warren and Hunterdon counties in New Jersey.