NoMATERIA 2020 | Balance

COVID-19 Emergency
More than a million people have died during the Coronavirus pandemic. As we speak,
SARS-CoV-2 affects every single sector of human activity throughout the planet. Tending
to this health emergency is, without a doubt, priority. At this point, we know the virus is
mainly transmitted from person to person, mainly by contact with pathogens found in
saliva, which are spread when breathing, speaking, or coughing. We also know that the
presence and availability of objects, products, and artifacts play a fundamental role in the
prevention, cure, and recovery of those who are affected by plagues, wars, or turmoil.
As in all emergencies, the sequence of events in a pandemic is quick and unpredictable,
as contingency hastens all circumstances. In turn, uncertainty settles in, and the
need to make immediate decisions arises. Previously tested protocols are set in place
alongside new ones that have been designed on the fly. Communication strategies are
designed urgently. However, barely any new types of objects have appeared due to the
unexpected presence of COVID-19. New twists applied to past inventions take the lead.
Repeated design processes (in terms of materials, configurations, uses and experiences)
are accelerated.
In the most restricted and complicated spaces —that is, in emergency rooms— ventilators
play a crucial part. These devices, which assist the breathing of patients of
which, are now made virtually everywhere in the world: the technical documentation
of engineering and development design teams, which was carried out by companies
and other institutions before the pandemic, was made available to the public. “95% of
the efficiency in the use of ventilators lie in the hands of the treating physician,” stated
Dr. Marco Ranieri, director of the anesthesiology and intensive care unit of the largest
hospital in Bologna in Italy, who led the first protocols for the use of these devices.