Thursday Dec 12, 2024
Thursday Dec 12, 2024
Monday, 17 May 2021 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
The ‘Heated Humidified Oxygen Therapy Unit’ manufactured by the Air Force for the benefit of patients with respiratory difficulties, was officially handed over to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the Presidential Secretariat last week.
In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Heated Humidified Oxygen Therapy Unit was invented with the contribution of Professor Ranil de Silva, Dr. Thilanka Ratnapala, and a team of medical experts as per the instructions of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, and as a concept of Vidya Jyothi Dr. Bandula Vijay, who is a renowned ambassador in the international innovation arena.
The device is capable of delivering temperature-controlled oxygen with full humidity at high capacity to patients with respiratory complications.
The Maintenance Unit of the Air Force Engineering Corps manufactured the unit under the guidance of Air Force Commander Air Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana and the supervision of Group Captain Prasanna Martino. After inspecting the limitations, safety features and performance standards, the unit was presented to the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) of Sri Lanka, and the University of Moratuwa has confirmed compliance with the Electrical Safety Standards.
Although it had been earlier estimated that a cost of Rs. 1.5 million would be spent to manufacture the unit, it has been completed at a lower cost of Rs. 300,000. At present, 50 kits are planned for production and will continue to be manufactured as required by the health sector.
The functionality of the device was demonstrated to the President during the meeting. Minister of Health Pavithra Wanniarachchi, Defence Secretary-General (Retd.) Kamal Gunaratne, Secretary of Health Sanjeewa Munasinghe, and Air Force Commander Air Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana were also present.
