St. Luke’s, Lehigh University collaboration results in intelligent, life-saving invention. BETHLEHEM, PA. - Among tales of hope, generosity and outdoor bug zapper for backyard zapper togetherness, the COVID-19 pandemic has additionally given rise to an unimaginable feat of ingenuity - the invention of the "Bug Zapper" to sterilize masks. As hospitals and other front-line organizations jumped to secure large portions of life-saving supplies and private protecting gear (PPE), there has also been the necessity to identify quicker, extra environment friendly ways to clean and sterilize these gadgets, particularly the coveted N95 masks. St. Luke’s University Health Network anesthesiologist, Christopher Roscher, MD, anticipated the necessity and an concept began to type. "It became clear that PPE provides would turn out to be restricted because the virus progressed," he says. The St. Luke’s Sterile Processing Department, or SPD, is the place the place all surgical and medical instruments are sent to be meticulously cleaned, sanitized and packaged for reuse. It’s a behind-the-scenes perform that's an essential a part of the well being care system. "On any given day, we are processing many, many objects here at our hospital in Bethlehem," states Taylor Bennett, St. Luke’s Network Director of Sterile Processing.

"But with the present scenario, there is an overwhelming must process our employees’ PPE every day. For Dr. Roscher, a light went on - literally and figuratively. "I had been doing personal research about discovering ways to decontaminate masks for reuse, and peer-reviewed literature suggested that, in a pandemic, backyard mosquito control UV-C mild could possibly be a suitable technique to sterilize masks," he says. UV-C is a selected vary of UV, or ultra-violet, mild and has been shown to deactivate viruses and other pathogens by inflicting changes in their DNA. Through a mutual contact, Dr. Roscher acquired 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 searching for was a excessive-throughput sterilization system," stated Dr. Tansu. The two organizations joined forces by a sequence of Zoom conferences and tons of of emails, to design, fabricate, install and check the gadget - all inside a matter of two weeks - and all while sustaining social distancing protocols.

The top consequence: a approach to successfully and effectively sterilize 200 masks every eight minutes! The "Zappify Bug Zapper insect zapper" in action. "Our current items weren't designed for giant-scale use. They may only sterilize about 30 masks at a time," said Eric Tesoriero, DO, anesthesiologist for St. Luke’s and a collaborator on the mission. The unit, engineered by Lehigh college students and workers and assembled at St. Luke’s by biomedical engineer Jay Johnson, has been affectionally named the "Bug Zapper" not solely as a result of its look, however resulting from its COVID-killing properties. "It is unbelievable that this mission moved at such a fast pace," remarks Dr. Tansu. The group ranged from PhDs to MDs and even included an unexpected contributor - Axel Tansu, Dr. Tansu’s adolescent son. In reality, it was Axel’s contribution that allowed the unit to have such a high-throughput rate. "Our original design was cylindrical in form, to ensure even publicity of the light on all surfaces," explains Dr. Tansu.

"Axel got here to me and mentioned, backyard mosquito control ‘Dad, what about an octagon? ’ And sure enough, he was proper. A patent to protect the team’s mental design has been filed. And a celebration for the collaborators to meet, in-particular person, shall be planned as soon as it's secure to take action. Until then, the Bug Zapper will likely be arduous at work, serving to to protect the frontline workers at St. Luke’s and past. This, like so many other tales, affords a ray of hope throughout the pandemic - showcasing that the human thoughts and spirit can overcome something - especially when working collectively for an excellent trigger. Afterall, because the famous philosopher Plato understood 1000's of years ago, necessity is the mom of invention. Founded in 1872, St. Luke's University Health Network (SLUHN) is a fully built-in, regional, non-revenue network of more than 15,000 staff providing companies at eleven hospitals and 300 outpatient sites. With annual internet income better than $2 billion, the Network’s service area contains 11 counties: Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, Bucks, Carbon, Montgomery, Monroe, Schuylkill and Luzerne counties in Pennsylvania and Warren and Hunterdon counties in New Jersey.