St. Luke’s Medical Center, first to use state-of-the-art convalescent plasma machine in PH

St. Luke's Medical Center (SLMC) has recently upgraded its equipment for convalescent plasma therapy with the two Scinomed Plasma Collection Machines (iPCM) from Getz Healthcare Philippines.

“St. Luke’s Medical Center is one of the first hospitals in the country to conduct convalescent plasma therapy for COVID-19 patients. We are very grateful to Getz Healthcare Philippines for their donation since these machines will greatly help us extend the best treatment for our patients,” said Dr. Arturo De La Peña, SLMC President and CEO.

With the donation of the Scinomed Plasma Collection Machines, SLMC can significantly increase the amount of plasma collection and in turn, the number of patients who can benefit from this treatment. With these machines, collection of donor plasma can be completed in 40 minutes instead of the current 1.2 to 1.5 hours. This provides greater efficiency, increased donor comfort and safety, and increased plasma collection given the same timeframe.

In addition, the machines can collect up to 1,000ml instead of the current 500ml. This increased volume of plasma can be easily transferred to smaller bags, providing treatment to two to three patients, instead of the current one patient.

“St. Luke’s Medical Center will be the first in the country to use a state-of-the-art machine built specifically for the collection of plasma, increasing collection speed and donor comfort,” said Ian Grist, General Manager of Getz Healthcare Philippines.

With the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, convalescent plasma collection has become an urgent and important requirement in hospitals. Currently, over 100 Scinomed iPCMs have been deployed in the United Kingdom and across Europe to collect convalescent plasma successfully.