Strategic National Stockpile Ventilator Training Program

Pandemic events present multiple challenges to the health care environment and the ability of the respiratory therapist to provide mechanical ventilation to all persons in need. The Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) is a repository of ventilators that would be used to supplement the supply currently in use by the nation’s acute care facilities. These ventilators can be requested and allocated to areas of need in the event of a pandemic. In 2020, the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) added several new mechanical ventilator models to the stockpile.

The Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) holds an inventory of ventilators of various types that can be deployed during a public health emergency if public health and healthcare facilities need additional ventilators to care for patients. Currently, there are 15 ventilator models in the SNS.

If a healthcare facility needs supplemental ventilators from the SNS during a public health emergency, it should work through the state public health department. State health officials are the ones who can request federal assistance for supplies, including ventilators. If you need assistance with this process, please contact the Division of Strategic National Stockpile (DSNS) Operations Center sns.ops@cdc.gov.

The AARC has partnered with the ASPR and SNS to provide necessary resources for the respiratory therapist to prepare for mechanically ventilating a large population during a public health emergency. Information is provided for all 15 mechanical ventilators in the SNS. In addition to ventilator-specific information from the manufacturers, we have provided educational information for respiratory therapists and for the cross-training of respiratory therapy extenders for medical emergencies.

For more information about the SNS resources, please visit the Public Health Emergency website.

Many of the stockpiled ventilators are included in the Ventilator Training Alliance (VTA) mobile app. This mobile app connects the respiratory therapist with ventilator training resources from alliance member companies, including instructional how-to videos, manuals, troubleshooting guides, and other ventilator-operation expertise critical to helping health care providers treat patients. The app is provided at no cost to medical professionals. To download the Ventilator Training Alliance knowledge hub application, visit the Apple App Store or Google Play store, or access the hub from any web browser.

Mass Casualty Respiratory Failure and Mechanical Ventilation

Over the last two decades, AARC has partnered with the Centers for Disease Control and Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response to train clinicians on the respiratory therapist’s role in mass casualty care and the ventilators in the strategic national stockpile. All in anticipation of a mass respiratory failure event. COVID-19 tested this preparation and challenged the world’s healthcare system. Staff shortages, PPE, ICU beds, and ventilators strained even the most prepared institutions. Hospitals were required to improvise on the fly. Staffing models were created, and the use of travelers became routine. The use of PPE amongst shortages placed caregivers at risk, challenging the duty-to-work paradigm. The role of the respiratory therapist evolved. New treatments were devised, tested, and either adopted or abandoned. There were three types of ventilators in the stockpile (a total of 14,000 ventilators). During the COVID pandemic, this number ballooned, adding 150,000 ventilators (over a dozen new models — two of the three original devices were scrapped). These challenges and the responses, as well as future planning, will be discussed in this four part symposium.