This archive report was first published on 13 May 2020.
May 13, 2020 - Dakar, Senegal. In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, Senegalese engineering students are rising to the challenge, using their technical skills to ease pressure on the wards and combat the growing problem in their country.
Youngsters from the Ecole Superieure Polytechnique (ESP), one of West Africa's top engineering schools, have turned their attention to developing innovative solutions to the crisis. Their inventions include automatic sanitiser dispensers and medical robots, designed to reduce the exposure of doctors and nurses to infected patients and the use of expensive protective gear.
One such invention is a small robot, dubbed 'Dr. Car', which can measure patients' blood pressure and temperature. The robot is guided by a mounted camera and controlled via an app, allowing doctors to communicate with patients remotely. This could potentially enable them to treat people isolated in hard-to-reach rural areas.
According to Lamine Mouhamed Kebe, one of the students who conceived the robot, the machine will reduce the exposure of doctors and nurses to infected patients and the use of expensive protective gear. 'At a certain point … we realised that medical equipment was limited,' he said. 'We can do something'. The robot is currently in talks with hospitals over its potential use.
Senegal's coronavirus outbreak may pale in comparison to the situation in Europe and the United States, but the country's authorities have recorded over 1,700 cases to date, including 19 fatalities. Hospital staff in Dakar are also beginning to contract COVID-19, highlighting the need for innovative solutions to combat the disease.
Other students have devised simpler devices, such as automatic hand-sanitiser dispensers, which they hope will battle the disease in Senegal. Gianna Andjembe, a masters student in electrical engineering, has designed a dispenser that could reduce the need for staff in schools and hospitals to supervise hand-washing.
The coronavirus has upended the lives of ESP students, with lectures now held over video and students rushing home due to a dusk-to-dawn curfew. However, the crisis has also given the young engineers a sense of purpose, with many feeling a sense of responsibility and patriotism.
