RECENTLY, in effort to eliminate Ebola at the source, through
use of innovative disinfection technology, two “germ-killing robots” were deployed from the US to the JFK Hospital
and ELWA Hospital both in Monrovia, Republic of Liberia, both hotspots of the
Ebola disease outbreak.
The robots, technically known as TRU-D SmartUVC, were used to
disinfect health care environments where Ebola patients are being treated. Good
Health Weekly gathered that TRU-D is the only portable UV disinfection device
on the market with Sensor360 technology, which calculates the time needed to
react to room variables such as size, geometry, surface reflectivity and the
amount and location of equipment in the room and effectively deliver a lethal
dose of UV-C light during a single cycle from a single, central location in the
room.
“It works by generating
ultraviolet light energy that modifies the DNA structure of viral pathogens,
like Ebola, so that they cannot reproduce. Viruses that cannot reproduce cannot
colonise and harm patients,” the inventor, a tropical disease expert and
medical anthropologist Dr. Jeffery L. Deal noted in an interview.
Deal and his colleague, Chuck Dunn, President and CEO of
TRU-D LLC, respectively, spoke about the importance of TRU-D to environmental
disinfection in
“TRU-D has been validated by more than 10 studies to be 99.99
percent effective in eliminating the most common pathogens that can use health
care-associated infections.
After deploying germ-killing robots to Liberia to aid in
battle against the Ebola Virus Disease, TRU-D SmartUVC inventor traveled to the
Ebola hotspots with UV disinfection devices
TRU-D guarantees a pathogen-free environment for patients and
health care staff. Deal, a Fellow in the
Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, has been training hospital
staff to operate the devices in a number of hospital environments and monitor
progress for successful disinfection.
“We developed TRU-D SmartUVC technology to combat the
devastating effects ofhospital acquired infections,” Deal said.
“Unlike many diseases, Ebola strikes hospital workers more
than any other group, making it the ultimate hospital acquired infection.”
With TRU-D, health care leaders in the U.S., Canada, the U.K.
and Saudi Arabia are eliminating pathogens like Ebola, Middle East Respiratory
Syndrome, MERS, influenza, norovirus, Clostridium difficile,
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, MRSA, etc., in all types of health
care settings, including isolation wards, patient rooms, operating rooms,
surgical suites, intensive care units, emergency rooms, public areas and
ambulances.
“We know through extensive CDC-funded research specific to
TRU-D conducted by thought leaders in epidemiology and infection prevention
that TRU-D is effective at eliminating anypathogen by delivering a precisely
measured UVC dose.
“As soon as we knew we could aid struggling hospitals in
Liberia, our team came together and formulated a plan to get TRU-D on the
ground. More than 200 TRU-Ds have been deployed to disinfect hospitals across
the U.S. and internationally.
Between 10 and 15 percent of Ebola cases have been among
health care workers. While most of this stems from contact with the patient,
concerns exist that the physical environment can retain active microbes and be
a risk. This device is used in the US to eliminate the organisms that may still
reside on the walls, knobs, rails or any other exposed surface in health care
settings. The robotic technology is capable of making the Liberian hospitals
safer for the staff and for new patients.
It was developed by a team of engineers, physicians and
industrial hygienists with the purpose of decontaminating entire rooms
automatically and eliminating concerns that a contaminated surface was missed
during routine cleaning.
We use an ultra-efficient narrow wavelength called UVC to
flood the room with germicidal energy. UVC dosage is accurately measured and
automatically adapts to kill organisms, even in shadowed areas.
This technology is designed to prevent the spread of the disease
transmitted via contaminated surfaces in health care environments and is not a
treatment or a cure. We believe that prevention is the best medicine.
The U.S. Army tested this particular wavelength against Ebola
and found that the measured dose TRU-D delivers results in incredibly rapid
destruction of the virus with its pathogen-specific dosing options.. We know it
is perfect for use in this critical setting.
Multiple studies have already been published from U.S. and UK
academic facilities of TRU-D’s ability to decontaminate rooms, almost always
testing it against organisms that are much more difficult to kill in the
environment than Ebola is.
Culled from Vanguard
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