New Transport Ventilator Provides Critical Support During Patient Transfers

  • May 12, 2022

Respiratory Therapist Sarah Wesdorp follows instructions from trainer David Brouwer while learning how to use the new transport ventilator. The portable, mechanical device helps either invasive or non-invasive patients who need airway assistance to breathe when being moved. The ventilator’s advanced capabilities enables Brookings Health’s ambulance team to now quickly and safely transfer a non-invasive patient to another facility.
Respiratory Therapist Sarah Wesdorp follows instructions from trainer David Brouwer while learning how to use the new transport ventilator. The portable, mechanical device helps either invasive or non-invasive patients who need airway assistance to breathe when being moved. The ventilator’s advanced capabilities enables Brookings Health’s ambulance team to now quickly and safely transfer a non-invasive patient to another facility.

Brookings Health System’s respiratory care department recently invested in a new, state-of-the-art Hamilton-T1 transport ventilator. The new ventilator will allow care teams to easily transfer critical patients, such as those with severe pneumonia from COVID-19, who need additional breathing support.

A transport ventilator is a portable, mechanical device that takes over the work of breathing when a patient is unable to breathe on their own. The new transport ventilator can provide invasive ventilation through a breathing tube, non-invasive ventilation through a face mask, or high flow oxygen therapy.

“Our new transport ventilator’s capabilities give our care team more options to support critical care patient ventilation,” said Respiratory Care Director Lynne Thompson, RN. “We no longer need to always rely on ambulance crews from Sioux Falls or other large facilities to come to Brookings to transport a patient who requires non-invasive ventilation. Instead, our ambulance team can now quickly and safely transport a patient to another facility while providing optimal respiratory support.”

The transport ventilator’s mobility also allows for safe and timely transfers of critical patients between hospital departments when diagnostic imaging, surgery or another service is required.

Brookings Health System’s respiratory care team evaluates, treats and cares for patients with breathing or other cardiopulmonary disorders. As a part of Brookings Health System’s multidisciplinary care team, respiratory therapists help treat both outpatients and inpatients. For more information on respiratory care services, please visit brookingshealth.org/Respiratory.

About Brookings Health System

Brookings Health System, located in Brookings, South Dakota, includes a 49-bed hospital, the 79-bed The Neighborhoods at Brookview nursing home, Brookhaven Estates senior living apartments, Yorkshire Eye Clinic & Optical, and medical clinics in Arlington, White and Volga, South Dakota. It is a non-profit, city-owned facility that offers the community a full range of inpatient, outpatient, emergency and extended care services. Brookings Hospital provides local access to doctors in Brookings and offers robotic da Vinci surgery and Mako robotic-arm assisted procedures, making it one of the premier rural community hospitals in South Dakota. For more information about the services offered at Brookings Health System, please call (605) 696-9000 or visit us on the Web at brookingshealth.org.