Erika O’Donnell, General Manager, Ambu

New technology and innovations are making human life far easier and better than before. In the medical and healthcare industry especially, the pace of development is undeniable. Yet, even with rapid advancement, there is always a need for new and visionary solutions in the medical device segment to enhance the lives of people. At the forefront of such innovation is Ambu Australia Pty Limited, a leading medico-technical company delivering cutting-edge and efficient single-use healthcare products to save lives and improve patient care.

Ambu Australia is a fully owned subsidiary of Ambu A/S, a multinational medical devices company with a global Head Office based in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was launched as a direct company in Australia in 2009. Initially, the company had just 2 staff and a small office based in the Northern Beaches of Sydney. However, in the past 11years, it has seen rapid growth. Today, it stands tall as part of one of the world’s most recognized medical device companies, with a full contingent of head office staff alongside product consultants and clinical educators located throughout Australia.

Leading the Way in Visualization, Anaesthesia and Patient Monitoring

Ambu Australia brings an innovative portfolio of products focused on three primary business areas – Visualization, Anaesthesia, and Patient Monitoring. The pioneering company launched the world’s first-ever single-use flexible videoscope (Ambu®aScopeTM) in 2009and since then it has become a mainstay of bronchoscopy in Australia. Over the past 11 years, Ambu has further expanded its portfolio of single-use bronchoscopes and in 2019 introduced a new range of single-use Rhinolarygoscopes (a ScopeTMRhinolaryngo).

“These products complement our visualization range which also includes video laryngoscopes (King VisionTM) and Viva Sight, a single lung ventilation system consisting of double- and single-lumen tubes with an integrated camera. This portfolio has set the scene for single-use endoscopy worldwide and created an advanced platform for improving patient care, optimizing the workflows of health care professionals and reducing overall health care costs,” explains Erika O’Donnell, General Manager of Ambu Australia Pty Ltd.

Ambu also set a major milestone in emergency medical equipment with the introduction of the first-ever manual self-inflating resuscitator – the ‘Ambu bag’ in 1956. Today, its Single-Patient Use version (the SPUR II) continues a long history of saving people’s lives. The company also provides other anaesthesia and airway products including laryngeal masks, and face masks along with a full portfolio of patient monitoring electrodes in both Cardiology and Neurology.

Attributes that Differentiate Ambu

Ambu makes a real difference in the daily lives of clinicians by providing high quality, easy to use, and most importantly single-use, sterile devices that eliminate the risk of patient cross-infection posed by traditional reusable medical devices.

“In the context of COVID-19, infection prevention has become more of a priority than ever. Our single-use visualization systems enable clinicians to continue providing world-class healthcare without the concerns of cross-contamination between patients and helping to minimize risk to clinicians,”observesErika.

As the company has its own manufacturing and distribution along with direct sales representation throughout the APAC region, this ensures a reliable supply of products. Besides its products, the uniqueness of Ambu also comes from its highly experienced product consultants who have an in-depth knowledge of key procedures within each specialty. Ambu Australia’s focus is to offer a ‘whole of hospital’ approach .The team deliver in-depth product training, including workshops with the ability to provide CPD (Continuing Professional Development) points to customers as requested

Keeping Customers and Their Patients at the Forefront

Besides its innovative healthcare solutions, one key aspect that makes Ambu stand out from its competitors is its customer-centricity. Driven by the passion to improve patient care and patient outcomes, the highly experienced professionals at Ambu work extremely closely with healthcare facilities to continually evaluate its products and provide ongoing support and education, both pre- and post-purchase. Amidst the challenges of this global pandemic, with limited or no access to healthcare facilities, Ambu’s staff remained dedicated to supporting customers. This, in conjunction with focusing on continuity of supply, stands as testimony to their commitment to living up to the clients’ expectations.

“We pivoted our field support operations to remain as close as we could to our customers when they needed us, even though we could no longer physically be on-site at hospitals. We quickly moved to providing virtual support, with in-service and education delivered via video and Zoom as required and requested by our customers,” states Erika.

Fostering an Empowering Value-driven Culture

The three key values that embody the core strengths of Ambu are results with speed, collaboration, and integrity. Staying true to these values, Ambu guides its business decisions and aligns its activities to deliver this purpose and promise.

As a socially responsible organization, Ambu also focuses on sustainability and environmental impact. As an organization, Ambu aims to grow sustainably with regard to its people and the planet. Ambu is a signatory of the UN Global Compact, the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative with more than 10,000 companies as members. This means it is a part of a global and joint effort, a network of good practice and methods(UNglobalcompact.org).

Instilling these key values in its culture, Ambu creates a strong collaborative work environment where its employees can feel genuinely empowered to express their views and ideas while enjoying opportunities to learn and maximize their potential.

“We strive to ensure we recognize our people both as individuals and contributors of a high-performing team. In return, we are rewarded with passionate and engaged people who further fuel our success, ”adds Erika.

Progressing Forward With a Positive Outlook for the Future

In the wake of COVID-19, the significance of single-use endoscopy has become more evident than ever and Ambu is confident that it will emerge from the pandemic as a stronger company, with an even greater demand for its products. Moving forward, Ambu aims to further expand its team and continue working towards its meaningful purpose of saving lives and improving patient care.

“Globally Ambu is advancing its innovation agenda, entering urology and GI, the largest markets in endoscopy. By 2022, Ambu plans to introduce another 12 new devices across all major areas of endoscopy,” concludes Erika.