ASA members discuss solutions to COVID-19 ventilator shortages with CNN, CBS-TV

ASA President Mary Dale Peterson, M.D., MSHCA, FACHE, FASA, was quoted in a March 26 CNN.com article on COVID-19 patients sharing ventilators, where she stated, “Before resorting to something we believe would probably harm more patients, we need to fully utilize the resources (anesthesia machine ventilators) that are already there.”

Additionally, in an April interview with CBS-TV (Chicago), Joseph Szokol, M.D., FASA, ASA chief health policy officer, demonstrated how anesthesia machines can be used as ICU ventilators. “COVID-19 patients, because the damage to their lungs, need a higher concentration of oxygen,” said Dr. Szokol.