Thank you to Masimo and Teleflex

Lifebox welcomes industry support to the ESA Lifebox Campaign: Masimo and Teleflex make a generous contribution and a clear commitment to safer anaesthesia for all

Safe anaesthesia is fundamental to safe surgery – but a global gap in access to pulse oximetry puts safe anaesthesia and surgery out of reach for millions worldwide.

The European Society of Anaesthesiology (ESA) is working with international NGO Lifebox Foundation and leading industry partners to change this.

More than 70,000 operating theatres in low-resource settings worldwide lack a pulse oximeter, an essential device using non-invasive technology to monitor the level of oxygen in a patient’s blood stream which sounds an alarm at the slightest change. Even short periods of oxygen deprivation under anaesthesia can lead to hypoxia, complications, long-term organ damage and death.

Eastern Europe is no exception – an estimated 1 in 3 patients does not have access to a pulse oximeter during surgery, meaning that life-saving surgeries like Caesarean sections or trauma repair all too quickly become life-threatening.

To support colleagues and patients across the region, ESA launched a fundraising campaign for Lifebox.  Founded by renowned surgeon and author Atul Gawande, Lifebox promotes safe anaesthesia and surgery through training and environment-appropriate equipment – including a pulse oximeter specially designed for low-resources settings.

We are thrilled to announce that the campaign has received support from two star industry players:

Masimo, a world leader in noninvasive monitoring technology, is donating 200 pulse oximeters, which will support the safe monitoring of 1 million patients over the next 5 years.

Teleflex, a provider of specialty medical devices for a range of procedures in critical care and surgery, is donating £2,500.

These generous contributions, made to the 2016 ESA fundraising campaign for Lifebox, will make an immediate, positive change in the safety of anaesthesia in Eastern Europe.  Beyond this, they offer a strong statement of support for the safety of patients everywhere, and the vital role of the business community in driving long-term change.

ESA and Lifebox recognise the trail-blazing work of these companies, applaud their generous contribution, and look forward to a sustainable programme that will benefit the safety of patients and our clinician colleagues today and for years to come.

For more information about the ESA Lifebox campaign, click here or donate online.