In the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, Vyaire Medical employees know that each of them may be asked to go above and beyond their normal duties and they stand ready to answer the call. Literally.

In April, Troy Taylor, a Vyaire Medical sales representative for southern California, received a call from Roland Bouvier, director of government sales. There were ventilators destined for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention needed to be prepared for delivery. The preparation, known as “kitting,” involves packaging ventilators with all related items – batteries, hoses, backpacks, paperwork, etc. – needed to operate the devices.

Taylor reached out to longtime friend and colleague Terri Pickar, a ventilator solutions specialist, and together they traveled an hour to a warehouse where the equipment was waiting. Because the warehouse is certified for medical supplies, no food or drinks, including water, were permitted inside.

The pair spent the better part of the first day getting organized and preparing 30 ventilators for shipping. “By the end of the first day we were organized and had a process down so it started to go pretty smoothly,” Taylor said.

“It definitely helped to have that organization. Otherwise we would’ve been there a lot longer,” Pickar added.

But with additional ventilators to prepare, and more arriving each day, they knew they were going to need more help so they called in Bob Mennig, a regional clinical specialist.

The trio spent a total of four days at the warehouse and prepared about 200 ventilators for delivery, all while continuing to fulfill their daily duties. “I was on call that week for the tech team,” said Pickar, who normally is responsible for educating and training clinicians. “I was able to take calls as needed.”

Taylor, Pickar and Mennig are all former clinicians so they had a deep understanding of the importance of what they were doing. “For me, it was the ability to have an impact,” Mennig said. “It gave me a sense of pride to know that I was able to do that.”

“At the end of the day, we all work for Vyaire and we’re here to get the job done for our customers,” Taylor added. “I was just happy to have the opportunity to show who we are as a company and to show that we’re always there for our customers and their patients.”

For more information about Vyaire’s response to the COVID-19 crisis, visit the company’s COVID-19 Response Center at https://www.vyaire.com/Covid-19.