COVID-19 Information Hub
On Wednesday 11th March, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a pandemic in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Our lives may all be very different right now, but despite the challenges, COSMED address this situation with diligence and full commitment continuing manufacturing and shipping its medical devices.
Due to the COVID-19, we are receiving an increasing number of queries, so we would like to provide you with this relevant information:
- Company Organization
- Products and Supply
- Prevention Strategies to Minimize the Infection Risk
We are committed to being close to our employees, customers and partners, and will continue to keep you informed as the situation evolves.
Scroll through the page to find information, materials, useful links and contact information.
To all of you, stay safe and healthy!
Company Organization
A dedicated team
COSMED has installed a specific Team to monitor the Coronavirus (COVID-19) disease development. We feel responsible for the safe use of our products, the safety of our customers, business partners worldwide, and of course the safety of our team.
Supporting people and communities
COSMED has always been committed to its employees and their health, and this remains our top priority. As an organization with a global presence engaged in the collective effort to protect the communities where we operate, we are taking all necessary measures to minimize the impact in our ordinary activities.
Job Organization
Our production team are designated as key workers. We have made provisions to reduce the risk of exposure for all parties. Some of our employees are working remotely and for the ones working in our factories COSMED is putting in place several virus-mitigating actions ensuring to work in a safe environment.
Travels
For health and safety reasons, we have also requested the cancellation of business travel to all our staff members located in those countries where the pandemic situation is more critical; in the other countries COSMED recommends not to travel unless strictly necessary.
Meetings
We encourage to replace in-person meetings by virtual meetings. Our teams are accustomed to remote work, leveraging digital collaboration tools on a regular basis in the normal course of business.
Events
Many international events scheduled during 2020 have been already cancelled or postponed. We are working on an updated event plan for the second part of the year and any further information will be available on our website as soon as possible.
Products and Supply
Business Continuity
COSMED has a business continuity framework to procede operations amidst the potential myriad business disruptions and aims to build high-level resilience in all departmental services and sites. Thanks to the preparation work and the support of our worldwide team, we are confident in our business continuity.
Supply Chain
We are working closely with our supply partners to make sure we can get row materials and have a robust supply chain, and we are all maintaining certain levels of stock in case there are problems with availability in the future. However, given the uncertainty of many variables and the rapid spread of COVID-19, we recommend our partners to plan carefully future orders and provide us with updated forecasts ASAP.
Dealers Network
Around the world, the companies that distribute our products each face their own unique set of challenges. We have enough stock to supply all our distributors across all markets. They are working hard to get our products to those that need them, and we would like to thank them for the lengths they are going to.
On-site Support
Due to this situation, COSMED cannot guarantee on-site support to all customers for installations or part replacements in countries with severe travel restrictions. We suggest contacting our support and education team for online technical support when possible.
Prevention Strategies to Minimize the Infection Risk
COSMED devices have been designed to minimize the risk of infection due to contaminated components. This may include the implementation of single use items, high bacterial/viral filtration efficiency patient filters or/and unidirectional flow mechanisms (from patient to device only).
Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, we would like to provide some documents that may help in resolving concerns over the use of COSMED products in this particular moment, as well as the updated manual of Cleaning and Disinfection for all COSMED products and accessories.
Effective prevention and control strategies must be compulsorily implemented to prevent nosocomial infection. Cleaning and disinfection procedures for environment and equipment should be paid more attention.
Disposable in-line filters represents an effective and less expensive method of preventing cross-contamination. ATS/ERS Statement provides a helpful guide on how to prevent infections, explicitly recommending that: “... barrier filter should be used to protect all equipment in contact with expirates from patients, unless the equipment is sterilized or replaced between patients...”.
COSMED strongly recommends the use of filters over single-use flowmeters to minimize the dispersion of aerosol droplets in the environment produced during forced exhalation and other lung function maneuvers. Use of high bacterial/viral filtration efficiency filters ensures device protection, avoids cross-contamination and protects patient and healthcare personnel from aerosolized droplets in the environment.
International Organizations useful links
To find out the current experiences and recommendations relating to COVID-19, you can consult the international guidelines listed below. The information provided by these organizations is constantly updated.
2. European Union response page
4. ECDC: European Center for Disease Prevention and Control
5. CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
6. NIH: US National Institutes of Health
7. JAMA Network
We look forward to resuming our ordinary activities as soon as possible, we kindly ask your patience and we apologize for any trouble that this scenario may cause you.
If you have any concerns, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.
