Directed by Dr. Yousef Asfour- the Head of the Board of Directors, Arab American University contributed in supporting the “COVENT Ventilator” project that is considered to be the first of its kind in Palestine.
The COVENT Ventilator
This device is used for emergency cases only and has safety features that guarantee safe ventilation process with no complications. It is an electromechanical device with electromechanical parts, and the main part of it is the DC Motor that is connected to the device through an Oxygen Intake Cylinder Module that helps in the vital breathing process of inspiration and expiration.
This device _which is an attempt to produce an open source of artificial respirator for emergencies_ was developed by the following specialized engineers: Eng. Ibrahim Alboul, Eng. Amer Hamayel, Eng. Mahmoud Barham, Eng. Tariq Othman, Eng. Mohammad Jaradat, Eng. Ala’ Alsaifi and Eng. Ahmad Abdelbaset and was funded by the Arab American University along with the Supreme Council for Creativity and Excellence and the Palestinian Incubator for Energy.
Prof. Ali Zeidan Abu Zuhri- the University President and Prof. Waleed Deeb- the Academic Advisor of the Board asserted that AAUP will always support and encourage creative ideas and projects as they believe in the Palestinian pioneer youth energies. Prof. Abu Zuhri and Prof. Deeb said that the university contributed in supporting the COVENT Ventilator because they saw a real opportunity for a Palestinian product to see the light, especially if it was developed to be a recorded product the competes internationally. They also appreciated the hard work of the team of Engineers who supervised this project step by step to provide a device that will contribute in filling the gap in the Palestinian hospitals in the circumstances that the hospitals are currently facing as a result of the Corona pandemic.
Prof. Mohammad Asia- the Assistant to the President of Medical Schools and Dean of Faculty of Allied Medical Sciences said that AAUP has recommended to take in consideration the safety specifications in this device, and to provide all support and effort to provide the needed material to develop it. Moreover, professors of AAUP will work on providing scientific advice to the team to help in checking the device during its developing stages.
Prof. Asia clarified that the device was tested twice in the Technological Simulation Hospital laboratories in the Faculty of Nursing in Arab American University under the supervision of Mr. Saleh Abu Lafeh – the certified trainer for artificial respiratory devices, Ms. Maysa Kasabra- the Director of the Technological Simulation Hospital and Mr. Ahmad Hadrab- the Director of the Heart Center in AAUP.
It was recommended that the device can be used as it is for emergency cases only, and it also can be used in the Medical and Nursing Faculties in the Palestinian universities after taking the approval from the Palestinian Ministry of Health and the Palestinian Standards Institution. In the meantime, the team of this project will continue working on studying the prototype of the device to make it meet all international standards and specifications in order to submit it to the Supreme Council for Creativity and Excellence, the Palestinian Incubator for Energy, and the Arab American University to get a financial support for the device’s 2nd stage.
