Ventilators Bought From China Could Kill COVID-19 Patients, Says UK Doctors

• Senior British doctors found that the 250 ventilators purchased from China can cause “significant patient harm, including death”.
• The China-made ventilators called Shangrila 510 model were built by a major manufacturer Beijing Aeonmed Co. Ltd.

Senior doctors and medical managers in the United Kingdom have recently warned against the use and purchase of ventilators made from China as the medical equipment could cause “significant patient harm, including death”. The announcement was made after the British government procured 250 ventilators with brand name Shangrila 510 model from a well-known manufacturer Beijing Aeonmed Co. Ltd. and found that the ventilators were “unreliable”.

In a letter, the British doctors explained that the ventilators they purchased from China were substandard. They also said that the ventilator machines had a “problematic oxygen supply, could not be cleaned properly, had an unfamiliar design and a confusing instruction manual”.

The doctors said Beijing Aeonmed Co. Ltd’s ventilator oxygen supply was “variable and unreliable” and the quality of the machines appeared “basic”. They also detailed that the machines’ fabric case could not be cleaned properly, which is essential when treating a highly infectious virus like the COVID-19. The Chinese manufacturer likewise did not include a “non-E.U.” oxygen connection hose.

“We look forward to the withdrawal and replacement of these ventilators with devices better able to provide intensive care ventilation for our patients,” British doctors wrote in a letter addressed to officials of the National Health Service (NHS), reported NBC News.

The doctors concluded then that Shangrila 510 model ventilators are unsuitable for use in the current pandemic since it is designed for ambulance rather than beside a hospital bed. In fact, doctors had to utilize a hospital trolley as a makeshift stand for the machine.

There is no clear instances who in the British healthcare system saw the letter, but the NBC News were able to confirm from the Department of Health and Social Care, that the letter was already seen and has now raised the matter with the Chinese manufacturer. The Department of Health and Social Care oversees the NHS and the procurement of ventilators from abroad.

The department declined to address questions raised in the letter about how many ventilators were purchased, why they chose the said model, and whether frontline physicians were consulted before buying them. The health department only said that the ventilators from China has yet to be distributed or use by any hospitals in the UK.

In the first week of April the British cabinet ministers announced the purchase of medical equipment, “thanking” the Chinese government for their support.

“I’d like to than the Chinese government for their support in securing that capacity,” Chancellor of the Duchy of Lanchester Michael Gove said in a press briefing.

This incident is not the first time when China-made medical equipment do not meet the high quality standard to treat patients suffering from coronavirus. There were reports in the past that countries, including Spain, Italy, and the Netherlands, recalled all masks and other protective masks bought from China, as it never protects individuals using it.

In April, the chief of Finland’s emergency medical supply agency tendered his resignation after a multimillion-euro shipment of medical masks from China were found substandard, low quality, and unsuitable for use when treating patients with coronavirus.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Xhao Lijian immediately assured all countries that it will “crack down on counterfeit and shoddy products” and will impose punishment with “zero tolerance” to any manufacturing companies that were found exporting substandard medical equipment.

In the first week of April the British cabinet ministers announced the purchase of medical equipment, “thanking” the Chinese government for their support.