Visakhapatnam: Innovative portable multi-feed oxygen manifold designed

Visakhapatnam: In an effort to cater to the requirement of oxygen supply for the patients affected due to coronavirus pandemic, personnel from naval dockyard, Visakhapatnam, designed an innovative 'Portable Multi-feed Oxygen Manifold (MOM)' using a six-way radial header fitted to a single cylinder.

The equipment would enable one oxygen bottle to supply to six patients concurrently thus enabling critical care management to a larger number of COVID patients amid existing limited resources. The entire set up was made operational by the manufacture of a fine adjustment reducer and specific adapters of requisite dimensions for connecting the oxygen cylinder and the portable MOM.

A typical oxygen providing facility at hospitals comprises an oxygen cylinder feeding only one patient through a venti-mask arrangement. The preliminary trials of the entire assembly were conducted at MI Room at Naval Dockyard, Visakhapatnam.

This was followed by rapid trials at the Naval Hospital INHS Kalyani wherein the portable MOM was successfully set up within 30 minutes. After successful trials, naval dockyard has commenced manufacture of 10 portable MOMs with two six-way radial headers to cater to 120 patients at makeshift locations to help treat the patients.