Doctors call for 'harmful' ventilators from China to be removed from Black Country hospitals
Doctors have demanded the withdrawal of “unreliable” and “harmful” ventilators bought into the West Midlands from China.
Medical experts have reportedly warned the Shangrila 510 ventilator model, made by Chinese firm Beijing Aeonmed Co Ltd, could cause ‘significant patient harm including death’.
But 300 of the Chinese ventilators were flown into the UK on April 4 – and some were sent to Sandwell General Hospital in West Bromwich.
Toby Lewis, chief executive of Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust, confirmed: “We took delivery of some ventilators, we tested them, we had some concerns and we did not use them with our patients.
"We registered that with regional and national clinicians and our concerns were shared.”
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A letter leaked to NBC News showed that senior doctors were concerned the breathing machines, which were built for ambulances rather than hospitals, not only had a problematic oxygen supply but could not be cleaned properly.
Part of a five-page document read: ‘We believe that if used, significant patient harm, including death, is likely.
"We look forward to the withdrawal and replacement of these ventilators with devices better able to provide intensive care ventilation for our patients.”
Mr Lewis added the region currently had enough ventilators to cope with demand, but warned that a fresh surge in the virus could lead to supply issues.
It marks the second time the region has received poor quality ventilators from China.
Last month local firms had to step in after a batch arrived with connections missing.
It is not clear how many of the latest ventilators were sent by Beijing Aeonmed or whether any other NHS hospitals received shipments of the ventilators.
Medics at Sandwell Hospital found the machines provided an oxygen supply that was ‘variable and unreliable’.
Tests also showed they had only a ‘basic’ build and the fabric case on the device could not be cleaned properly by staff.
The machines were designed for ambulance use rather than for hospitals meaning staff had to create makeshift stands for the device out of a hospital trolley.
Earlier this month, ministers confirmed that they had purchased and unloaded 300 ventilators from China at MOD Donnington near Telford.
So far more than 1,900 coronavirus patients have been confirmed to have died in hospitals across the Black Country, Birmingham and Staffordshire.
