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29Mar 20
Form5’s COVID-19 PPE Efforts

Form5 Prosthetics March 29, 2020

As our world is facing an unprecedented moment in history, Form5 feels called to serve our community more now than ever. It is at this time that we believe everyone can and should do their part to support one another. Our team has passionately come together over the last week to realize an extension of Form5’s mission of empowering people that has allowed us to pivot our work during this pandemic to 3-D print face shields for healthcare providers in Ohio. Our Innovation & Technology Committee has collaborated with a variety of medical professionals, engineers, and designers to fabricate a reusable, accessible, and adaptable face shield that serves as a barrier for eyes and airways to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

The Form5 Face Shield is:

Reusable- The visor can be utilized for multiple episodes with a disposable single-use shield which is easily replaced between patient encounters.

Accessible- The face shield leverages technologies and materials that are easily accessible to meet the immediate need of Personal Protection Equipment.

Adaptable- The fluid shield barrier was created by utilizing readily available clear, durable report cover sheets, which can easily be replaced in a matter of seconds.

With our resources and the great dedication from our I&T committee, we have been able to provide this simple design that healthcare professionals and first responders can use while safely tending to patients. The report cover sheet protects eyes and airways without hindering visibility or breathing and can be easily replaced between interactions.

One of our engineers on the committee, Lindsey Austin, saw the shield idea floating around the Internet and knew immediately that our team could easily produce such a product. She has certainly been putting in the hours- working until midnight every night this week! Austin feels this work will be incredibly rewarding in the fight against this pandemic and is very grateful for the opportunity to work directly with medical professionals who will use this design. Jay Perkins, Form5’s I&T Committee chair also shared in our ABC 6 News feature how this is a way for us to “use our experiences, intellect, creativity, and our equipment to help where we can.” Check the feature out here!

With its simple design, we are ramping up production starting this weekend and are looking to partner with local hospitals, first responders, and other healthcare providers who are in need of Form5 face shields. We are also looking to connect with local entities or individuals with printing capabilities to send us Form5 open-source face shield visors that we can distribute to our partners. Learn more about how you can get involved in by joining our Form5 Prosthetics | Face Shield | Volunteer Database group on Facebook. If you are in need of Form5 face shields please contact us at innovation@form5prostheticsinc.org.

If you are not in need of PPE or able to print and still want to aid in our efforts, you can donate on our website, https://www.form5.org/donate!

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