Author: Ashley Small Public Affairs Specialist, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response
Lt. Cmdr. Leo Angelo Gumpas and Mr. Xadean Ahmasi haven’t known each other very long. In fact, they just met last year when Leo moved into Xadean’s neighborhood. In the short span of their friendship, the two developed a potentially life-saving solution that can help communities support patients who depend on durable medical equipment (DME) during emergencies.
As neighbors, Leo and Xadean got to know one another and discovered they had a lot in common. Not only were they both single dads raising young children, but they also shared similar professional interest in technology. Leo, a proud parent of one, works for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) National Institutes of Health (NIH). Xadean, a proud parent of two, is the owner and principal consultant for an IT consulting firm called BizTech Fusion, LLC.
A commissioned officer in the U.S. Public Health Service, Leo also serves as a logistics and information technology officer on a team that deploys to support communities across the country during emergencies when hospitals and other parts of the local health system are unavailable or overwhelmed.
In September 2013, one of Leo’s colleagues informed him of an ASPR Idea Challenge seeking solutions on a system that, in emergencies, could determine the location and status of life-sustaining durable medical equipment (DME). Leo immediately felt the need to enter this challenge.
While deployed for Hurricane Sandy Leo had seen, firsthand, the need for this type of technology in impacted communities. He decided to reach out to Xadean to gage his interest in entering the challenge with him.
“The challenge required a merge of two heads,” said Leo. “With Xadean’s IT background and my disaster deployment experience, I felt like we could put together a good solution.”
Xadean agreed, and the two went to work. As single dads, the project required the two of them to carve out time between their busy day jobs and time with their children.
“We would work while our kids were playing with each other,” noted Xadean. “Sometimes, it would be late at night after we put them to bed.” Over a three-week period, the two worked together to develop and submit an innovative solution to Challenge.gov.
On Feb. 20, HHS announced winners of the Idea Challenge. Leo and Xadean’s submission, an internet-based solution that monitors and transmits essential information from DME devices to caregivers and responders during emergencies, had won first place!
“We were shocked but very honored and excited to win,” said Leo. “Xadean and I firmly believe a solution like this can help communities identify needs of DME patients and minimize potential risks to their health and safety during emergencies.”
Going forward, Leo and Xadean hope this idea can become reality.
“There is a lot that needs to be done before this solution is viable,” said Xadean. “But people who depend on DME really need better support in disasters, so we look forward to one day seeing our idea in practical use.”
Leo Angelo Gumpas is a Greenhouse Gas (GHG) program manager at NIH. He develops NIH’s GHG inventory and devises strategies to reduce NIH’s carbon footprint. He recently won the HHS Ignite (beta) program, an internal competition to test new and unconventional ideas at HHS. His project involved using energy meters to develop energy reduction strategies in NIH labs and to fine tune design standards for equipment loads in NIH labs to maximize energy efficiency.
Xadean is the owner and principal consultant for BizTech Fusion, LLC and has over 18 years of experience working in all major areas of Information Technology (IT). His expertise specifically includes hands-on experience managing, developing, and securing enterprise data, video, and voice communications for government, IT consulting firms, telecommunications companies, health care organizations, and financial Institutions. Xadean has led the design, implementation and maintenance of data centers, enterprise infrastructures, and unified communication platforms across a broad range of industries.
