Alya Nurbaiti, Jakarta – A ventilator developed by the University Indonesia (UI) has passed clinical trials and is ready for distribution to hospitals, the university announced on Tuesday.
In a statement on Tuesday, UI spokesperson Amelita Lusia said a joint team from UI's School of Medicine and School of Engineering was in the process of producing 200 of the ventilators, dubbed COVENT-20, to be distributed to a number of COVID-19 hospitals and emergency hospitals.
The device has two ventilation modes – Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) and Continuous Mandatory Ventilation (CMV) – both of which have undergone clinical trials on humans in the past few weeks.
The CPAP mode was tested on patients in Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital and the university's hospital during May, while the CMV mode was tested in Persahabatan Hospital on June 3.
"The result on Monday showed that both modes of ventilator were recommended for use," UI's School of Engineering dean Hendri Budiono said in a written statement obtained by The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.
Andi Ade Wijaya Ramlan, one of the doctors who tested the ventilator, said the CMV mode could be used for patients who had difficulty breathing and needed a time-triggered breathing intervention.
Meanwhile, the CPAP mode could supply oxygen to patients who were still conscious and breathing on their own, Andi said.
School of Medicine dean Ari Fahrial Syam said a lack of ventilators was one factor leading to COVID-19 deaths.
"Now that the COVENT-20 has been clinically tested and received a license from the Health Ministry, we can provide more ventilators to prevent fatalities," Ari said.
According to the official government count, Indonesia has 40,400 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 2,231 deaths as of Tuesday.