Design that Matters (DtM) designs medical devices for global health in low-resource settings. The speed of the coronavirus pandemic is turning all clinical settings into low-resource settings. In response, we have shifted to applying DtM's expertise in rapid prototyping, human-centered design and medical devices to the domestic shortage of critical health supplies.
Our first project is a 3d-printable face shield PPE (personal protective equipment) for frontline health care workers. We took the Prusa Printer RC2 design as a starting point. Our initial design research revealed the need for improved protection for the wearer from aerosol and splatter from above, and improved washability and re-use.
In the last week, we have assembled a team of over forty experts in design, engineering and medicine with volunteers from Spark Health Design, Microsoft, and Boeing, and clinical experts from Mass General Brigham, the University of Washington Harborview Medical Center and the UW Medical Center at University campus. Working nonstop in groups spread across the country, we have blasted through three very fast cycles of prototyping and clinical testing. The final design, DtM-v3.0, along with instructions for fabrication and assembly, have been officially released on the NIH website.
We have released this design under under a public domain, open access license so you are all free to use, remix and build upon our work. We have posted CAD files and STL files on the NIH website for you to use and adapt however necessary to help protect frontline healthcare workers.
The need is urgent. The response from clinical evaluators has been encouraging. One ER nurse on the front lines at a Seattle-area hospital, wearing the DtM-v3.0 face shield for the first time today, said:
"I love it. It makes me feel safer. I was swabbing someone for covid-19 when he vomited on me. It kept me clean."
And let’s not forget everyone else who cannot stay at home right now: home healthcare workers, delivery drivers, restaurant workers, grocery store clerks, warehouse employees, postal carriers. All of these people would also benefit from PPEs like this design to protect themselves and reduce the spread of coronavirus.
CALL TO ACTION:
If you are already making face shield PPEs consider using this design, or incorporating features from this design into your work
If you have connections with healthcare workers or a clinical facility, please make them aware of this design and have them contact us for help with access
If you have access to a 3d-print farm or the capability of adapting this design to higher-volume manufacturing processes like injection molding, please contact us
If you have access to a 3D printer and you want to help, go for it and send us a picture so we can celebrate!
ADDITIONAL LINKS:
Spark Health Design has compiled relevant references spanning product requirements, regulatory and human factors for the Design that Matters Face Shield effort and for anyone else contemplating a make-your-own face shield project.
Jeremy Hanson at Seattle Makers has produced a useful IPC Safety HOWTO video for hobbyists who want to help with face shield production.
See an archive of process development photos on our working Google Drive folder.
