In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, some of the world’s leading producers of medical
liquid oxygen took steps to expand access to their lifesaving product in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs) experiencing critical oxygen shortages: “However, the underlying problem of a lack of access to medical oxygen in LMICs remains largely unaddressed,” the Foundation adds in its analysis report, stressing the urgency of the situation.
“The issue is urgent and on a vast scale. In 2021, it was estimated that 73 million people with low blood oxygen (hypoxemia) attended healthcare facilities in LMICs, and of those, only 22 million were suffering from COVID-19. Many more people, including 32 million children, attending these facilities needed oxygen due to other conditions and routine procedures, e.g., if they underwent anaesthesia during surgery.
“Yet, all too often,” it continues, “these facilities did not have – and still do not
have – adequate supplies of medical oxygen to treat their patients, leading to
preventable loss of life.”
The report does, however, identify some company efforts, including some in South Africa – that could lead to a more sustainable supply of medical liquid oxygen in more LMICs
over the long term: “Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, Air Liquide and Linde have reported providing medical liquid oxygen in regions they did not previously supply. Encouragingly, Air Liquide, Air Products, Messer and Nippon Sanso Holdings Corporation have reported installing or acquiring new liquid oxygen-producing Air Separation Units (ASUs), including in South Africa, China, Egypt, India, Vietnam and Thailand.
“These ASUs have the potential to significantly boost the supply.”
There are several challenges to improving access to medical oxygen in LMICs, the Foundation acknowledges, including healthcare facility infrastructure and a fragmented
supply chain involving complicated logistics and distribution networks.
“Gas companies play a critical role in helping to overcome some of these challenges,
in particular by pursuing and formalising long-term partnerships with governments and global health stakeholders. Air Liquide and Linde have already formalised partnerships with global health organisations to address access gaps
in LMICs.”
Both companies, it notes, have entered into Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with
Unitaid and the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI).
SOURCE:
Brandfundi media release on behalf of Access to Medicine Foundation
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