— First responders of the Ebola virus 

The Ebola virus has left more than 5,000 people dead as cases in West Africa continue to surge. Ebola first responders are working tirelessly to save others and end Ebola. Many of these heroes are putting in long hours in extreme heats. We are proud that our TechKewl phase change cooling vests are providing these tireless workers some comfort and protection from heat stress. 

The working environment for Ebola first responders is intense. They are subjected to the extreme heats of countries like Sierra Leone and Liberia, while wearing cumbersome protective suits. The intense intense heat experience while wearing these protective suits was described well in an article about a visit to a Mock Ebola Ward:

“As one health worker explained, sweat can be dangerous. Once a person’s face mask becomes sopping wet, they need to get out of their suit immediately. They are essentially being waterboarded by the mask. Even when that doesn’t happen, workers often don’t stay in the ward for more than two hours, lest they get lightheaded and start to lose their full cognitive abilities” (read full article)

According to Bill Gates:

“Health workers in protective suits get so hot that they have a hard time caring for their patients. (For example your goggles fog up and you sweat profusely.) I asked a team of experts who work on technology for keeping vaccines cold to refocus on keeping the medical workers cool. Within days, the team had found an existing solution: a vest with pockets where you could insert cooling packs.”.(read full article)

With our TechKewl cooling vests, we are proud to be a part of the international Ebola response. We are excited to deploy our technologies in West Africa and around the world. TechNiche International’s CEO Doug Frost was recently invited to talk to the World Health Organization about how our cooling vests are an essential tool in protecting Ebola first responders.

We are honored to be apart of the international Ebola solution and look forward to assisting the health care workers battling this disease.