Press & Media Kit

What is Glia?

Glia is a global innovator of high-quality medical equipment. Our core values are centered on an open source philosophy, where sharing and collaboration create an unwavering principle: quality healthcare should be accessible to all. This principle drives us to publicly document our products, processes, and research, which guarantees that everyone, even in resource-challenged areas, is able to benefit from and reproduce our innovations.

Our Origin

The stethoscope is a symbol of the medical profession, and for good reason: it was one of the first medical devices to be universally adopted after its 1816 invention. Today, doctors and other healthcare professionals keep this device around their necks for quick and reliable diagnosis of patients. Despite its ubiquity in North America, emergency medicine physician Dr. Tarek Loubani quickly learned that stethoscopes are not easily accessible, especially in the Global South. To remedy that, he and an international team of researchers created the world’s first 3D printed stethoscope in 2014. This groundbreaking work eventually founded Glia on the principle that everyone deserves equal access to health care, regardless of ethnicity, gender, or economic status.

Growth and Philosophy

Glia has since grown into an international humanitarian organization, building an ever-increasing portfolio of high-quality, open source medical devices using low-cost technologies, such as 3D printing. A team of healthcare professionals, researchers, biomechanical engineers, and manufacturing experts create devices that are clinically validated and available at a fraction of the price of their widely deployed counterparts, removing cost barriers for any community trying to access quality healthcare. Glia fosters an environment conducive to collaboration by keeping all designs, methods, studies, and products open access. This model encourages community engagement while also providing unrestricted access to the blueprints of these devices, creating equitable healthcare systems across remote or international communities where access to medical devices may be hampered by conflict or poverty.

Our Work

Glia’s Work in Gaza
In 2016, Gaza’s Ministry of Health emergency medicine providers, led by Dr. Mohammed Al-Attar, determined that there was a significant need for improved hemorrhage control beyond what “first-aid” style tourniquets could provide, which are traditionally comprised of a belt or a sheet/stick combination. Glia Gaza was founded in response to ongoing conflict and blockade in the region, which made importing these life-saving devices nearly impossible. The Glia Gaza team designed, developed, tested, and deployed the Glia Tourniquet, which, unlike standard CAT tourniquets, was designed for use on both adult and pediatric patients. It can be self-applied one-handed or applied externally by a trained medical responder onto a patient’s limb. Production of Glia’s Gaza Tourniquet was soon followed by other medical devices, including stethoscopes and faceshields, to ensure a steady supply of crucial medical devices to the local population. Since 2017, thousands of tourniquets were successfully deployed in Gaza by field medics, emergency medicine physicians, and trauma first responders.

In 2018, Glia’s Gaza Tourniquet was deployed as an emergency use device in response to excessive traumatic injuries during the Great March of Return caused by gunshot wounds. Of 5,969 people who were shot, 86.9% of injuries were in the arms or legs. Two people died of their injuries, a remarkably low 0.03% fatality rate, compared to typical fatality rates of approximately 10% for limb injuries. Since then, Glia Gaza has collaborated in countless hours of research and development with Gaza’s four paramedic services, hospitals, and ministries to refine the design, including field testing on trauma patients under live fire.

In August of 2022, Glia Gaza once again rose to action by supplying local first responders in hospitals due to an escalating conflict causing approximately 50 deaths and hundreds of injuries. Glia Gaza manufactured and distributed 500 tourniquets to emergency ambulance services providing first aid during this emergency.

During the October 2023 war, Glia Gaza immediately distributed its full inventory of over 1000 tourniquets to first responders and hospitals that were treating casualties of shellings and bombings. At the time of this publication, this war is ongoing and the number of injured and dead continues to rise. On October 10, Glia’s offices were heavily damaged as a result of a nearby bombing, making it nearly impossible to manufacture any more tourniquets in this facility for the foreseeable future. Glia has an ongoing campaign to ensure Gaza is adequately stocked with tourniquets, as part of its broader Stop the Bleed: Gaza initiative, which also provides training on the proper use and application of tourniquets.

Glia Medical Devices

Glia’s Current Product Portfolio
Through tireless research and meticulous development, we've harnessed the power of innovation to address complex medical challenges. Our devices reflect our commitment to excellence and equality while providing healthcare professionals in under-resourced regions with cost-effective tools to elevate patient care. Explore our portfolio:

Peer-reviewed research shows that our open source stethoscope operates equally to a Littmann Cardiology III at a fraction of the price.

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Our tourniquet is an essential life-saver for trauma patients and can be manufactured anywhere in the world by using a 3D printer and sewing machine.

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Our open source otoscope is an affordable and repairable diagnostic tool that increases hearing care for both clinicians and patients.

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Hemodialysis patients experiencing a fistula bleed can avoid a medical emergency by “capping” their bleed with our Kidney-CAP, giving them time to call medical response services.

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Glia’s Future Portfolio Expansion

At Glia, we're dedicated to equitable healthcare access through continuous exploration and innovation. Our ongoing commitment to research and design drives new product creation aligned with this vision. The following products are in various development stages as we support healthcare accessibility.

This device helps to remove excess water, solutes, and toxins from the blood of patients with kidney problems. The Glia team began researching this device in 2019 requiring additional funding to complete.

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This device measures an individual’s oxygen saturation. The open source pulse oximeter is anticipating clinical trial resumption in 2023.

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This device records the electrical activity of the heart. The first prototype of our open source electrocardiogram (ECG) has been under development since 2016 and is nearing completion.

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Contact Glia

For all press, media, and general inquiries, please use our contact form to get in touch with a member of Glia.