eNews April 21, 2026

How is COVID-19 affecting your business, your people, your customers? IMDA is a membership organization, and in times like these, we can all use some camaraderie. If you have a COVID story to share, advice to offer, or a warning to sound, send it to Mark Thill, IMDA’s communications director, at [email protected], with the subject line “IMDA COVID story.” We’ll compile them and send them back out to you.

Innovation is blossoming!

Fears of a ventilator shortage have unleashed a wave of experimentation at hospitals, reports The New York Times. Doctors at North Shore University Hospital on Long Island, for example, have been using machines designed for people with sleep apnea to keep coronavirus patients breathing; engineers at New York University have transformed hooded hair salon dryers into personal negative pressure chambers that deliver oxygen and limit the spread of aerosolized virus; and pulmonologists across the country have been turning to a remarkably simple intervention — flipping patients onto their stomach, which improves oxygen levels for those in respiratory distress.

Preparing for the return of elective surgeries

It might seem difficult to fathom today, but at some point in the future, hospitals will ramp up to resume elective surgical procedures. The American College of Surgeons issued a set of guidelines for hospitals to follow as they do so, covering four categories: building COVID-19 awareness; preparedness (including PPE and ventilator issues); patient issues (including prioritizing cases); and delivery of safe, high-quality care.

Dynamic Ventilator Reserve

HCA Healthcare said it would provide as many as 1,000 ventilators as part of the American Hospital Association’s collaboration with the federal government and health systems to distribute equipment to hospitals experiencing a surge of patients with COVID-19. The collaborative effort, called the Dynamic Ventilator Reserve, will include an online inventory of ventilators and associated supplies, such as tubing and filters.

Worth looking at

Harvard Medical School has published a brief, easy-to-read description of the connection between COVID-19 and heart damage. If nothing else, it’s something to share with your kids as they home-school.

A ripoff?

Is Royal Philips N.V. ripping off United States taxpayers with its ventilator, which had been developed with taxpayer funds? A congressional subcommittee is trying to find out.

Repository of ventilator training resources

Seven ventilator manufacturers have formed a Ventilator Training Alliance (VTA), partnering with software developer Allego to create a mobile app that medical providers can use to access a centralized repository of ventilator training resources, including how-to videos, manuals, troubleshooting guides and other expertise. Participating manufacturers are Dräger, GE Healthcare, Getinge, Hamilton Medical, Medtronic, Nihon Kohden, and Philips.