The Vanuatu Ministry of Health, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Union (EU) came together at Vila Central Hospital today to launch a new oxygen plant greatly increasing the country's access to life-saving medicinal oxygen. The oxygen plant has the capacity to produce over 500,000 litres of medicinal oxygen within 24 hours, able to fill a total of 74 6800-litre oxygen cylinders. This means that in a day, approximately 25 critical COVID-19 patients can be supported with non-stop medicinal oxygen.
The oxygen plant was inaugurated in a ceremonial handover led by the Honourable Minister of Health, Rick Tchamako Mahe, Ambassador and Head of the Delegation of the European Union for the Pacific, His Excellency Sujiro Seam, and WHO Vanuatu Officer-in-Charge Dr Philippe Guyant.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us the importance of having immediate access to medicinal oxygen. Oxygen is a critical resource in the treatment of serious cases of COVID-19 and other respiratory diseases, and this is why we worked closely with WHO and the EU to ensure that every patient who needs oxygen has access to it here in Vila Central Hospital,” said the Health Minister Rick Tchamako Mahe. “I want to extend my sincere appreciation to our partners for collaborating with us to make sure we can provide high quality medicinal oxygen to our patients.”
Health Minister Hon. Rick Tchamako Mahe (fourth from right), EU Ambassador H.E. Sujiro Seam (third from left) and WHO Vanuatu Officer-in-Charge Dr Philippe Guyant (second from right) during the launch of the new oxygen plant in Vila Central Hospital today. They are joined by Gwennan Delannée (second from left), First Counsellor of the French Embassy, and Stefan Adrianesens (leftmost), Logistician at WHO’s Division of Pacific Technical Support, and other officials. The support to scale-up access to oxygen in Vanuatu includes provision of 200 oxygen cylinders. Photo: WHO
WHO is supporting nine Pacific island countries and areas with scaled-up access to medicinal oxygen thanks to funding from the EU and the Governments of France and Germany. Over US$800,000 has been invested in the oxygen plant in Vanuatu, which includes the manufacturing of the oxygen plant and its transportation. WHO is also supporting the set up and testing of the plant, the training of health workers, and provision of spare parts and oxygen cylinders.
The Ambassador and Head of Delegation at the European Union Delegation for the Pacific, His Excellency Sujiro Seam said, “To enable Pacific Island Countries to face COVID-19, the European Union committed EUR 22 million to strengthen health systems in the region, through the World Health Organization and the Pacific Community. The oxygen plant commissioned today benefited from this funding and will continue to provide Vanuatu with improved vital medical services long after the end of COVID-19.”
The oxygen plant installed at Vila Central Hospital uses pressure-swing adsorption (PSA) technology, which captures the surrounding air and then processes and concentrates the air to the 93% purity acceptable for medical purposes. The concentrated air is then filled directly into oxygen cylinders to be used to treat patients when needed.
“Medicinal oxygen is a critical component of patient care and of overall health system. Its availability can mean the difference between life and death for people in need, not just those sick with COVID-19 but with other respiratory illnesses,” explained Dr Mark Jacobs, WHO Representative to the South Pacific and Director of Pacific Technical Support. “That’s why we are happy to be working with ministries of health and partners like the European Union to scale-up access to medicinal oxygen across the Pacific.”
Pre-start up inspection and checks are being conducted in the oxygen plant in Port Vila, Vanuatu. Photo: WHO/Stefan Adriaensens