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Performing intubation places doctors at high risk for exposure to infectious bodily fluids produced by COVID-19 patients. The CovidBox helps contain these bodily fluids while providing openings to enable staff to access to the patient from two sides. The box weighs less than 15 pounds and can be easily and quickly positioned or removed.  The CovidBox is reusable and can be cleaned by wiping with alcohol. Apply a drape with tape to cover the torso and create a tighter seal.

Developments

Contributors

The design and development of the CovidBox has been led by Mike Rooney (Mechanical engineer, UBC Dept. of Chemistry, Berlinguette group) with support from:

• Dr. Tony Badh and his team with the Dept of Anesthesiology at St Paul’s Hospital (Vancouver, Canada), who are helping test CovidBox and providing design input.
• Dr. Neil Ramsay and physicians at Vancouver General Hospital (Vancouver, Canada), who are helping test CovidBox and providing design input.
• Other members of the Berlinguette Group (UBC Dept. of Chemistry) including Karry Ocean, Fraser Parlane, and Ben MacLeod who are helping with design, logistics, and communications.
• Prof. Zac Hudson who is giving design input.
• Dylan Gunn (with the UBC Engineering Physics Project Lab) and the VMERS community who are providing organization guidance and general support.

Acknowledgements

The development of this box has been made possible by a large number of people. Particularly, we would like to thank:

• Prof. Curtis P. Berlinguette for encouraging his team to devote their time to COVID-19 response efforts.
• Conconi Family Foundation for their financial support.
• Dr. Hsien Yung Lai and his coworkers for their inspiration for this project.
• Walsh Plastics and North Shore Plastics for their manufacturing support.

References

• Zuo, M.-Z. et al. Expert Recommendations for Tracheal Intubation in Critically ill Patients with Noval Coronavirus Disease 2019. Chin. Med. Sci. J. (2020) doi:10.24920/003724
• Canelli, R., Connor, C. W., Gonzalez, M., Nozari, A. & Ortega, R. Barrier Enclosure during Endotracheal Intubation. N. Engl. J. Med. (2020) doi:10.1056/NEJMc2007589
• Brewster, D. J. et al. Consensus statement: Safe Airway Society principles of airway management and tracheal intubation specific to the COVID-19 adult patient group. Med. J. Aust. 212, 1 (2020)
• Judson, S. D. & Munster, V. J. Nosocomial Transmission of Emerging Viruses via Aerosol-Generating Medical Procedures. Viruses 11, (2019)
• Infection prevention and control during health care when novel coronavirus (nCoV) infection is suspected. World Health Organization (2020)
• Modes of transmission of virus causing COVID-19: implications for IPC precaution recommendations. World Health Organization (2020)
• Covid19 Airway Simulation 3 20 20 UPDATE. Video, Vancouver General Hospital (2020)
• Aerosol Box – Design. Original intubation box design by Dr. Hsien Yung Lai, Taiwan.
• Evaluating the “Aerosol Box”. Video, Boston Medical Center Patient Safety (2020)
• Intubation Box. Dr. Benjamin Reeser (2020)

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