Thousands of people every year find themselves in Intensive Care suffering a life-threatening illness - and many will experience collapsed lungs. There is no definitive way to best restore the lungs after collapse - sometimes it's done using a ventilator, other times they are manually inflated.
Physiotherapist Matthew Linnane wants to reduce the uncertainty around this process, and identify the best method to restore the lungs of critically ill patients. During his research Matthew will test and trial a range of methods using mechanical and manual pumps, ventilators and suction to create a procedure to improve patient recovery.
This project has the potential to help thousands of people every week!
Diabetic foot disease is a silent but major epidemic. Researchers are developing a mobile app to help people care for diabetic foot ulcers at home.
When a patient's heart and lungs begin to fail, they are often put on a treatment called extra corporeal membrane oxygenation, or ECMO for short. These life-support systems are often the last chance to help critically ill patients recover by helping to pump blood and oxygen around the body. From infants to children and adults, these amazing machines have saved tens of thousands of lives worldwide.
Research has shown that the inability to talk can lead to depression, social withdrawal, lack of motivation to participate in self-care, and more. This is a common issue that occurs in intensive care units (or ICUs) all over the world - patients that require a tracheostomy (a procedure that involves inserting a tube through the windpipe to create an alternative airway for breathing) lose the ability to speak, as oxygen isn't make its way past their vocal chords.