E-DRUG: Accessibility of medical oxygen in developing countries
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[Please email your feedback to mbellier@gradianhealth.org or margauxbellier@gmail.com.
DO NOT CLICK REPLY -that send straight to the moderator]
Dear E-Druggers,
I'm interested in collecting feedback and data on access to medical oxygen
for rural hospitals in developing countries. I'm particularly interested in
information about the ECOWAS countries in Africa.
Could you please share your own experience from the field or refer me to
literature on this subject? The following information for each country
would be very useful:
- Price of O2 in cylinders (per 1000 L)
- Availability: is medical oxygen readily available in-country or is it
difficult to procure (stock-out, no distribution centers outside the
capital)?
- Sources: are there any other commercial sources other than Air Liquide
and BOC?
Please email your feedback to mbellier@gradianhealth.org or
margauxbellier@gmail.com. The research I'm doing is informal and is not
meant to be published, but if I gather interesting data from fellow
e-druggers I will summarize it and share it here with the community.
My own "field investigation" in Benin and in Togo:
- Cost estimate per 1000 L: USD 16 in Benin and USD 11 in Togo, which
seems very high. I heard that the *average* cost throughout Africa is
USD 5 per 1000 L.
- Oxygen cylinders seem to be always available outside the capitals
through well-stocked Air Liquide distribution centers. The problem for
hospitals is not to find oxygen cylinders, but rather to be able to
purchase them at these prices.
- I didn't find any other source than Air Liquide
By way of brief background: my organization, Gradian Health Systems, is a
US-based non-profit supplier of a CE-marked general anesthetic machine
invented in Malawi to function in any environment where surgery is
performed (unreliable power supply, no medical oxygen). More information on
our website: www.gradianhealth.org
Best regards,
Margaux Bellier
Market Manager
Gradian Health Systems
www.gradianhealth.org
Email: mbellier@gradianhealth.org
Margaux Bellier <margauxbellier@gmail.com>