'V.Babes' mobile ICU ventilators entered failure mode, company's service representative refused to enter unit

The ventilators of the mobile Intensive Care Unit located on the grounds of the 'Victor Babes' Bucharest Hospital stopped working due to the rise of the oxygen pressure above the allowed limit; a technical investigation is underway into the causes of the failure, the Department for Emergency Situations (DSU) announced on Monday evening, following the death of three Covid patients at the respective unit. "The medical staff of the mobile Intensive Care Unit became aware of the concomitant failure of all the ventilators in the container and informed the technical team of the hospital that they have an overpressure alarm, specifically a rise in pressure past 6 bar, the maximum allowed limit for the correct and safe operation of this medical equipment. After checking the oxygen pressure in the mobile unit, the ventilators remained in failure mode. The representative of the ventilator selling company, who arrived at the scene, refused to enter the unit although he was offered complete Covid protective equipment, and eventually left the hospital premises without stepping into the mobile unit," the Emergency Department said in a statement. According to the cited source, a verification is currently underway to determine the causes that led to the increase of the oxygen pressure beyond the maximum admissible limit. "The inspection of the ventilators, following the breakdown, showed that they stopped working following a registered increase in pressure beyond 6 bar. The unit operates under the joint coordination of the Department for Emergency Situations and of the hospital, and the continuous regulation of the working parameters, of the mobile unit's oxygen supply system, the monitoring thereof and the technical operation of the facility is done by the technical team of the hospital," the DSU statement shows. Three of the eight patients that were being treated at the 'Victor Babes' Hospital's mobile Intensive Care Unit died on Monday of cardio-respiratory arrest following the failure of the system; one patient was transferred to a hospital ward, another to the ROL 2 Hospital ('Ana Aslan' military ward), two to the 'Bagdasar Arseni' Hospital and another one to the Floreasca Hospital. AGERPRES (RO - author: Roberto Stan, editor: Claudia Stanescu; EN - editor: Simona Klodnischi)