We can’t win a war without ammunition, this is a hard truth. In the ongoing war against COVID-19, our soldiers on the frontline are our medical personal and the PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) is their ammunition. But with the world seeing an imbalance in the supply vs demand of this gear like never before, designers have taken up the mantle to supply these soldiers with ammo, or in this case, everything from face mask designs, student-designed $300 ventilator, designers at MIT making makeshift ICU pods and even turned scuba diving masks into ventilators! Meet the latest entry in this league of fighters, the Mobile Personal Protective Space (PPS) that creates a reusable yet extremely portable inflatable structure designed to keep the virus outside with space that allows the doctors to move around and examine their patients with ease.
Aesthetically similar to the sterile environment used for patients of Bubble Boy disease, the genius of this idea lies in the sterile passageway created for medical personnel instead of using disposable PPE. The Mobile PPS is a pneumatic area that allows doctors to treat patients safely. It has a positive air pressure which means the air constantly flows out of the personal space only – not letting potentially contaminated air inside. The doctor first steps into an air-locked compartment to disinfect and meet the patient. The doctor then enters the care area – a 4 x 8 meter transparent bubble that houses the medical equipment needed. The care area is equipped with gloves attached to the surface of the PPS at ergonomic locations, allowing the doctors to check the patient. A ventilator will supply clean air into the plastic bubble, ensuring it is always full and pushing the air outside, avoiding transmission of germs, and that ventilator can be located outside in an uncontaminated space.
The care capsule also doubles as an office, houses medical equipment, and includes an arm glove attached to the surface of the PPS to touch the patient. This way patient care is not compromised and neither is the doctor’s safety. The best part? The individual care units can be attached together to form a long safe passageway that separates and protects our medical staff, helping them do their jobs without the additional worry of contracting the disease.
Designer: Plastique Fantastique
