India has no authentic data on airborne diseases and this together with lack of awareness on the condition is a serious issue, said Úna Ní Raghallaigh, director of business development for EMEAA region, Novaerus Inc.
Globally, over one third of all hospital acquired infections (HAIs) involve airborne transmission at some point. This is responsible for up to 20 per cent of all endemic HAIs. Airborne transmission also accounts for 20-24 per cent of post-operative wound infections. In India, in the absence of authentic data, the situation could be even more serious, as there is not enough awareness about airborne infections, he added.
Moreover, the country has one of the worst air-quality index in the world and has the maximum number of TB cases. By providing a user-friendly effective solution which is clinically endorsed by independent agencies like NASA, we are aiming at mitigating the risk of airborne transmission of diseases which is in tune with India’s ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, she said.
There have been mainly two technologies namely ‘Trap’ and ‘Kill’ being used all these years. Trap technology uses Hepa filters and ionisers to arrest and localize the concentration of particulates. The Kill technology like UVGI, H2O2, Ozone destroy the pathogens. Both these technologies which are decades old have their inherent limitations. The newest DBD Plasma technology by Novaerus quickly destructs the DNA of the microbes which promises to be the most effective and economical solution for airborne infection control, Raghallaigh who was in India recently said..
There is some amount of resistance to adapt to a new infection-control technology. Healthcare providers in India are warry of the serious problem of HAI. More importance is given to hand hygiene, surface cleaning and fumigation. It is also widely assumed that installation of HEPA filters and laminar flows would take care of airborne transmission. However, viruses and some bacteria are so small that they cannot be filtered and total control transmission of pathogens on infected patients and staff is difficult. Hence there is a need of a new solution for airborne infection control, she said.
Novaerus DBD Plasma air-infection control technology is cost-effective. Even though upfront cost could be a few lakh rupees, the cost of ownership and maintenance of the equipment may be as low as Rs.200 per patient per day, depending on the size of the room and volume of the occupied patient beds. We wish to implement this solution to both private hospitals and government hospitals and clinics, said Raghallaigh.
“We are keen to team-up with municipal corporations, state governments and agencies like NABH to install this technology in critical care area of their affiliated hospitals. Airborne infection is a global problem. India is the fastest growing economy and amenable to newer technology. Considering its government emphasis on Swachh Bharat Abhiyan to minimise pollution, it is high time India implements corrective measures and invest in our technology which is successfully used in more than 30 countries. We wish to garner the major market share of the critical healthcare services where air matters the most!,” she said.
Now the company is also exclusively working with Trivector Biomed LLP, a 25-year old company which has been active in specialty healthcare across India and enabled over 30 installations in the country.
