Company’s Bluetooth tracking devices allow UMB to keep tabs on medical equipment loaned to Maryland Department of Health during COVID-19 pandemic.
Hospitals around Maryland are preparing for a surge in COVID-19 patients. When that surge comes, they will need more ventilators to save the lives of critically ill patients. The University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) heard the call and began the search.
Researchers from the School of Medicine searched labs and took inventory of ventilators. Jonathan Morrison, PhD; Gary Fiskum, PhD; Muhammad Mohiuddin, MBBS; Zhongjun “Jon” Wu, PhD; Louis DeTolla, VMD, MS, PhD; and Edwin “Ned” Kriel, DVM, identified 11 ventilators typically used by researchers and staff that could be loaned to the Maryland Department of Health (MDH).
Once identified, members of the UMB COVID-19 Incident Management Team collected the ventilators. The question: With so many donations streaming into MDH from universities, labs, and public health agencies across the state, how could UMB coordinate and track its medical equipment before distribution? That’s where Tile stepped in.
The company donated its small black tracking devices to UMB to place on the ventilators. These Bluetooth trackers allow users to find their belongings using a mobile app. The donation from Tile means UMB researchers can quickly return to work once the medical equipment is no longer needed in hospitals.
Once Rob Cook, MBA; Matt Fischer, PhD; and Laura Cathcart, PhD, affixed the Tile trackers, the ventilators were ready to be shipped to MDH, where they will be distributed to hospitals most in need.