Saving lives is a doctor’s primary concern. A lifetime of experience and education is crucial for split-second emergency treatment. Any time a specific instrument or technique can aid a doctor with his or her procedures, society chalks up another one for the good guys (in this case, you can recognize them by their white coats, not white hats).

Dr. Jeffrey D. Parker, Cincinnati physician and inventor, is playing a significant role in making intubation procedures easier for doctors and paramedics to perform. Intubation consists of inserting a plastic breathing tube into the windpipe so that oxygen can be pumped into the lungs of a patient. Parker recently received the prestigious Medical Design Excellence 2000 Silver Award for one of his inventions, a flexible tip breathing tube designed to be non-traumatic to the vocal cords and easier to insert.

In talking with Dr. Parker, one quickly realizes that decades of thought, experimentation, refinement and Hippocratean charity preceded this award. Even more important, after spending an hour at his office in Hyde Park, one senses that the Parker Flex-Tip Endotracheal Tube is just the first of a series of inventions that will revolutionize intubation techniques and will ultimately benefit countless people worldwide.

Fans of "ER" and other TV medical dramas know that assisted breathing procedures are fundamental in resuscitation medicine. Since 1912, intubation has been performed with a blade laryngoscope, which is similar in design to a metal tongue depressor with a handle attached, a device which Parker refers to as an "oral crowbar". This procedure can damage teeth and vocal cords; even more, it takes a lot of time and is very difficult to administer. "The fault is not with the people," Dr. Parker observed, "The fault is in the technology."

Yet there are few safe and effective alternatives and no new products or techniques to assist medical workers in this regard in 30 years. In fact, it’s alarming to find out that the current practices are not necessarily safe, but they are still employed because when a life is at risk, these measures still provide the best chance for survival.

For example, the oval-shaped bag attached to a mask which covers the lower face, a method often used both in the field and in hospitals, is "inefficient and potentially dangerous," explains Dr. Parker, "because it forces air into the nose and stomach as well, which can lead to adverse reactions."

By using new materials, research and the insights gained from decades of medical practice (which include the last seventeen years as director of Fairfield Mercy Hospital’s critical care physicians), Dr. Parker has invented a group of devices that center around aiding the breathing process.

Facilitating safe, rapid and accurate intubation has been our goal in developing all of our products.

The real beauty in his advances (for which his company has received over 30 patents, with another two dozen pending) is the simplicity in the design and the ease in application. The Parker Flex-Tip easily slides into the breathing tube, avoiding scraping or otherwise damaging the vocal cords. The Parker Intubation Guide is a curved plastic device which rests on top of the tongue while guiding the breathing tube—easily and correctly aligned—into the airway.

Finally, the Parker TrachView is a versatile intubating videoscope which will allow doctors to watch the insertion of the breathing tube on a compact, portable video monitor. All three of these tools work together and represent light-year advances within the field.

Dr. Parker holds degrees in philosophy, medicine and law. Parker Medical, the company he founded in 1994, is headquartered in Cincinnati and maintains marketing and manufacturing operations in Englewood, Colorado. With distribution around the globe, soon the reach of his products will match his worldwide lecture itinerary.

"My dream was to develop a new intubation guide to solve a long-standing problem. I wasn’t thinking about commercial success. But if you invent and develop good products, commercial success usually follows. But, for me, the saving of lives will be the most gratifying result of all.."

The remarkable local coincidence is that Dr. Parker’s Hyde Park office is within a few blocks of Dr. Henry Heimlich’s home; therefore it’s justifiable to say that the world at large is breathing much easier due to the lifesaving techniques and products originating from two addresses in Hyde Park located a quarter mile apart.