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How Do Ventilators Actually Work?

We asked a doctor at UCLA to break it down for us.

Amid talk of ventilator shortages, our Wake-Up Call newsletter (subscribe here) is examining how these live-saving machines actually work. Dr. Nina Shapiro, a pediatric airway surgeon at Mattel Children’s Hospital UCLA, explains how health care professionals manage the subtleties of ventilators — and keep patients alive.

During the challenging days of Covid-19, we’ve all been hearing so much about the need for ventilators. As a Californian, I was thrilled to hear that Governor Gavin Newsom decided to send off 500 of these precious machines to states in need. I’m a pediatric airway surgeon. In my field, ventilators are near and dear to our hearts; they are part of our daily work. Until these past weeks, I had never even considered the notion of a ventilator shortage. The concept is frightening, and the reality is terrifying. Yet here we are…