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Zak Marks - Inclusivity with Allergies
Manage episode 422050661 series 3569971
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Today’s guest is Zak Marks, co-founder of Kitt Medical. He has lived with a severe allergy to nuts for as long as he can remember. He decided to tackle a problem closest to his heart, which is – why isn’t there an equivalent to defibrillators for allergies? Wherever you go, there is usually access to a defibrillator, but there is no access to epi pens.
Zak shares the story of how he found out he was allergic to nuts when he was about 5 years old, and how it’s developed since then. And we also talk about how people can have a small reaction initially, but then their reactions can get worse and worse and they may go into anaphylactic shock.
He talks about how having allergies as a boy growing up, and now, he often has to carry his pens around with him in his jacket, as he doesn’t always carry a bag. For other allergy sufferers, there are often issues with their epi pens being out of date, and some also suffer mental health issues because of their constant worry about having an allergic attack. Living with allergies means you are often excluded from social occasions too. It was these various things that pushed him into creating the Kitt Medical
The Kitt contains four adrenaline pens and Zak and his team have now supplied Kitts to 300 schools in England, and also have delivered CPD accredited training; which is 20 minutes of videos and quiz questions that prepares people to be able to save a life when needed. Over 5,000 people have attended their training course.
Zak’s dream is that Kitts will be found in any building; schools, tubes, transport hubs, restaurants, hotels, stadiums, offices etc – schools are just the starting point.
Our conversation with Zak, who is passionate about his work, covers travel, and also the importance of having good friends who understand your allergy.
You can find Zak on:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zak-marks/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kittmedical/
Website:Www.kittmedical.co.uk
You can contact us at the following:
Dr Carol Sargent: https://sargentgroup.consulting/
Dr Tom Adler: https://getbide.com/
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