Procurement of ventilators for critical care patients.

King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital provides specialized care for critical and complex cases from across the nation, serving over 1,500,000 outpatients annually. With a capacity of over 1,400 beds and numerous specialized wards covering diverse medical disciplines, the hospital serves as a primary referral center for patients nationwide. Many of these patients face life-threatening respiratory crises, including:

·         Severe Respiratory Patients: Individuals suffering from severe pneumonia or infections leading to pulmonary edema (fluid in the lungs) or pulmonary empyema (pus in the lungs). This also includes chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients experiencing acute exacerbations where they can no longer oxygenate their blood sufficiently.

·         Critical Trauma Victims: Patients with chest injuries, such as multiple rib fractures that puncture the lungs or internal bleeding in the pleural cavity, causing respiratory failure. This also includes brain injury patients; when the brain's respiratory center is affected, the body may "forget" how to breathe or develop dangerously irregular breathing patterns.

·         Neonates and Pediatric Patients: Premature infants whose lungs are not yet fully developed. Specialized neonatal ventilators are delicate and vital tools for saving these young lives. It also includes children with congenital conditions, such as heart disease, that impair respiratory function.

·         Neuromuscular Disease Patients: Those with conditions like Myasthenia Gravis or ALS. When the muscles used for breathing weaken, patients can lose consciousness due to lack of oxygen. It also includes patients with spinal cord injuries whose nerve signals can no longer reach the diaphragm.

·         Post-Major Surgery Patients: Following heart, lung, or lengthy abdominal surgeries, patients often haven't fully recovered from anesthesia or remain too weak to breathe independently during the critical first 24–48 hours.

A ventilator acts as a 100% replacement for the natural breathing mechanism. It sustains vital signs and maintains blood gas balance at the safest levels, adjusting oxygen concentration from 21% to 100% based on each patient's specific needs.

Thai Red Cross Society invites you to be a vital force in donating toward the procurement of ventilators for critical care patients. These units will be installed in inpatient wards to enhance the life-saving capabilities of King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital. Even when a patient’s body cannot move so much as a fingertip, this equipment acts as a "backup lung," working with precision 24 hours a day to ensure every cell receives oxygen while waiting for the day the patient can breathe on their own again.

Because every donation you make... is a backup lung that sustains life in times of crisis