Dallas-Based MediSend International Opens BioMedical Repair Lab
Medisend can now ship valuable biomedical equipment in good working condition to medical facilities in developing countries worldwide thanks to a new biomedical repair lab.
Dallas, TX (PRWEB) March 22, 2006
Hospitals and medical facilities in the United States upgrading or replacing biomedical equipment are donating it to MediSend International to be shipped to developing countries lacking valuable diagnostic and treatment equipment. Often the biomedical equipment that is donated is in need of repair. Until now much of the equipment has had to remain in storage.
MediSend has opened a state-of-the art biomedical repair laboratory in their North Dallas headquarters. The large, well-equipped laboratory, funded by the ExxonMobil Foundation, has the capacity to repair and refurbish the biomedical equipment that MediSend ships to vulnerable populations worldwide, and also serves as a training facility where biomedical repair engineering students obtain first-hand experience working with complicated biomedical equipment. The laboratory's operations are completely wireless and use Fluke Biomedical diagnostic tools and repair equipment, along with Four Rivers asset management software.
"It is a natural extension of our operations to have the capability of repairing the biomedical equipment," says Nick Hallack, President and CEO of MediSend. "We see this as a major step in our ability to help improve healthcare conditions in developing countries and are grateful for the generosity of ExxonMobil," says Hallack.
MediSend's Biomedical Repair Laboratory is providing a special internship program for one of MediSend's community partners, Texas State Technical College. TSTC students have already begun working on equipment and receiving first-hand, on-the-job training under the guidance of
Costel Rizescu, PhD.
"The lab will enable MediSend to provide life-saving tools to developing countries," says Dr. Rizescu who adds that the new biomedical repair lab also offers a "great volunteer opportunity" for biomedical engineers and professors wanting to give of their time and expertise.
The repaired equipment will be shipped in good working condition and will receive a Certificate of Approval from the MediSend Biomedical Repair Laboratory. Shipments will also contain spare parts and manuals as well as the supplies required to perform the specific tests or treatments.
Last year ExxonMobil's generous support allowed MediSend to send shipments of medical equipment and supplies to El Salvador, Tsunami-ravaged Indonesia, Columbia, Equatorial Guinea, and Angola. With the aid of NGO's such as the World Health Organization, United Nations Development Programmes (UNDP), Save the Children, Cure International and the International Red Cross, supplies have made it into the waiting hands of doctors and surgeons in countries where medical supplies are desperately needed.
MediSend is a non-profit agency that addresses the medical supply and health care needs of developing countries worldwide. With donations from manufacturers, distributors, and hospital systems, MediSend provides shipments of medical aid to pre-qualified public and charitable institutions abroad. After MediSend collects supplies and equipment, the items are inventoried, repaired when necessary, and distributed to charitable institutions in long-term programs.
For more information on program sponsorship and volunteer opportunities at MediSend, call Nick Hallack at 214-575-5006, extension 112.
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