Jagadish Hiremath, 48, Critical Care and ICU Equipment Expert

As an intensivist who also understands medical equipment design, Dr Jagadish Hiremath suddenly found himself in demand as Covid-19 hit India and a shortage of ventilators and ICU equipment seemed imminent. Even as his hospital in Anekal, Bengaluru began to function as a Covid-19 care centre in June, Hiremath was working with seven companies on alternative ventilator designs that could quickly and economically be manufactured in India.

One of these, financed under the PM Cares Fund and manufactured by a PSU, has already hit the market. Another prototype by Mysore-based Skanray uses auto parts by Mahindra & Mahindra. Hiremath has also collaborated with Bosch on a humidified oxygen high-flow system, a simpler way of providing respiratory support. Aside from issuing popular citizen compliance messages in Kannada, Hiremath’s tweets on the number of young patients getting very sick helped dispel a false sense of security among youth. The doctor is now busy setting up a second hospital with 80 beds.

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CoronavirusCovid-19ICU expertJagadish HiremathOpen Minds 2020