St. Luke’s, Zap Zone Defender System Lehigh University collaboration leads to clever, life-saving invention. BETHLEHEM, PA. - Among tales of hope, Defender by Zap Zone generosity and togetherness, the COVID-19 pandemic has also given rise to an incredible feat of ingenuity - the invention of the "Bug Zapper" to sterilize masks. As hospitals and other entrance-line organizations jumped to secure large portions of life-saving provides and personal protective tools (PPE), there has additionally been the necessity to establish quicker, extra efficient methods to wash and sterilize these objects, particularly the coveted N95 masks. St. Luke’s University Health Network anesthesiologist, Christopher Roscher, MD, anticipated the necessity and an idea began to kind. "It grew to become clear that PPE supplies would turn out to be limited because the virus progressed," he says. The St. Luke’s Sterile Processing Department, or Zap Zone Defender System SPD, is the place where all surgical and medical devices are sent to be meticulously cleaned, sanitized and packaged for reuse. It’s a behind-the-scenes perform that's a vital part of the health care system. "On any given day, we are processing many, many gadgets here at our hospital in Bethlehem," states Taylor Bennett, St. Luke’s Network Director of Sterile Processing.

"But with the current situation, there may be an overwhelming must process our employees’ PPE on a daily basis. For Dr. Roscher, a mild went on - actually and figuratively. "I had been doing personal research about discovering ways to decontaminate masks for reuse, Zap Zone Defender System and peer-reviewed literature prompt that, in a pandemic, UV-C light might be an acceptable strategy to sterilize masks," he says. UV-C is a specific range of UV, or ultra-violet, light and has been proven to deactivate viruses and different pathogens by causing modifications in their DNA. Through a mutual contact, Dr. Roscher received in contact with Nelson Tansu, PhD, Lehigh University’s Director and Endowed Chair of its Center for Photonics and Nanoelectronics (CPN). "What St. Luke’s was on the lookout for was a excessive-throughput sterilization Zap Zone Defender System," mentioned Dr. Tansu. The 2 organizations joined forces by way of a sequence of Zoom meetings and a whole lot of emails, to design, fabricate, set up and check the device - all within a matter of two weeks - and all whereas sustaining social distancing protocols.

The top outcome: a method to effectively and efficiently sterilize 200 masks every 8 minutes! The "Bug Zapper" in action. "Our present units weren't designed for big-scale use. They might solely sterilize about 30 masks at a time," acknowledged Eric Tesoriero, DO, anesthesiologist for St. Luke’s and a collaborator on the undertaking. The unit, engineered by Lehigh students and employees and assembled at St. Luke’s by biomedical engineer Jay Johnson, has been affectionally named the "Bug Zapper" not solely due to its appearance, however attributable to its COVID-killing properties. "It is incredible that this project moved at such a fast speed," remarks Dr. Tansu. The team ranged from PhDs to MDs and even included an unexpected contributor - Axel Tansu, Dr. Tansu’s adolescent son. The truth is, it was Axel’s contribution that allowed the unit to have such a high-throughput rate. "Our original design was cylindrical in form, to make sure even publicity of the light on all surfaces," explains Dr. Tansu.

"Axel got here to me and stated, ‘Dad, what about an octagon? ’ And sure enough, he was proper. A patent to guard the team’s mental design has been filed. And a celebration for the collaborators to satisfy, in-individual, shall be planned as soon as it is protected to take action. Until then, the Bug Zapper will be onerous at work, serving to to guard the frontline workers at St. Luke’s and beyond. This, Zap Zone Defender like so many different stories, Zap Zone Defender System affords a ray of hope in the course of the pandemic - showcasing that the human thoughts and spirit can overcome anything - especially when working together for an amazing cause. Afterall, as the famous philosopher Plato understood 1000's of years ago, Zap Zone Defender System necessity is the mom of invention. Founded in 1872, Zap Zone Defender St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) is a fully built-in, Zap Zone Defender regional, non-revenue network of greater than 15,000 staff offering companies at 11 hospitals and 300 outpatient sites. With annual internet revenue larger than $2 billion, the Network’s service area consists of eleven counties: Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, ZapZone Defender Bucks, Carbon, Montgomery, Monroe, Schuylkill and Luzerne counties in Pennsylvania and Warren and Hunterdon counties in New Jersey.