Operating room staff in a Fort Lauderdale hospital with the Air Decontamination System scientifically proven to eliminate the SARS‐CoV‐2 (COVID‐19) virus.
Dr. David Kirschman began his medical career as a spinal surgeon in Ohio. In addition to spending hours in the operating rooms trying to fix people’s spines, Kirschman has an entrepreneurial side to him. He likes to invent things that will solve problems and benefit people around the world.
It was while he was in the OR performing surgery that Dr. Kirschman noticed that when looking up at the giant extraordinarily bright operating room lights he could see thousands of particles floating through the air. He thought to himself that the air in the OR, a space where sterilization is critical, is really no cleaner than anywhere else in a hospital; which is to say, it’s not clean.
That led to one of his more recent inventions that has become even more critical given the global pandemic and the risk of COVID-19 spread in hospitals. Kirschman has invented the only Air Decontamination System scientifically proven to eliminate the SARS‐CoV‐2 (COVID‐19) virus on a single pass. Kirschman is the founder of Aerobiotix, Inc. and the machines he invented have been through clinical trials and have been peer reviewed in leading medical journals.
In an interview with The Niagara Independent, Dr. Kirschman said at first, “I was concerned with patients getting surgical site infections, a situation when bacteria would get into a surgical site.” He said it happens one to two per cent of the time but in the United States alone, that equals tens of thousands of patients. “I did my research. I’m a bit of an inventor,” he explained. Kirschman currently holds 70 US patents.
The technology he came up with to address the issue of decontaminating the air in operating rooms is ultra violet light. It kills the bacteria floating around in the air. His machines are now in hospitals and other healthcare facilities in all 50 states as well as in Europe and South America. Given its effectiveness in killing COVID-19 he has set his sights on Canada and is currently in discussions with Health Canada and other officials. “With COVID, the need has certainly increased.”
He has partnered with a distribution company called Aerobiovac Canada. “Air quality management and getting all businesses back up and running safely with sustainable long-term confidence is our goal,” says Graham Brown, Director, Aerobiovac Canada. “We can now make this technology and these powerful medical grade systems more readily available to all Canadians to assist in the prevention of the spread of COVID‐19 while providing effective air quality and protection post pandemic.”
In addition to eliminating COVID-19, the machines also fend off things like C-Diff and MRSA, bacteria that are known to cause havoc inside hospitals. “It comes down to the healthcare system. Treating hospital acquired infections is a multi-billion dollar problem.”
The first instillation was in 2014 at the Cleveland Clinic. Lately, Kirschman said they are seeing interest from facilities other than hospitals given the current pandemic. In terms of Canada, Kirschman said, “the process is moving forward. We’re kind of just getting started in getting the technology into Canada.”
“The hardest place to kill a pathogen is inside the human body. If we can eliminate the danger in the air before it gets a chance to enter the patient, the human and economic benefits are huge,” explained Kirschman. “Real‐time treatment and monitoring of air quality provides a new tool for infection prevention to ensure the most hygienic care environments are achieved in their facilities.”
While Kirschman says he does miss being a surgeon on some levels, on others he’s happy leading a medical device company and continuing to be an inventor. “The nice thing about being an inventor is you can help multiple people all around the world. As a surgeon you’re limited to one person at a time. I do miss the technical aspects of surgery and the excitement and challenges.”
Kevin has spent over two decades as a public relations professional in a variety of sectors including professional sports, the arts, industry and healthcare. After tiring of the daily commute to Toronto he returned to Niagara and launched The Niagara Independent, an online news source published twice weekly.
He is a graduate of Brock University, Niagara College and the Richard Ivey School of Business. He was named one of Niagara’s 40 Under Forty in 2005.
Kevin is most proud of his twin daughters. He is also a triathlete and four-time Ironman finisher.
