The pandemic has been a time defined by adaptation as we all saw our lifestyles and priorities drastically shift. This has been especially true for immunocompromised folks, for whom a COVID-19 infection could be extremely serious. Inspired by his late daughter, one Quebec man has created a simple way to help immunosuppressed individuals be just a little safer.
Louis Sansfaçon was first inspired to create the Immunoclip while on a walk with his daughter, Émilie, who had just finished a round of chemotherapy in the hospital. While walking, they passed a man who wasn't wearing a mask. "Émilie told me, 'Dad, that guy doesn't know that I'm fighting for my life, for my health,'" said Sansfaçon.
"'Everybody wears a mask. So why don't we use the mask as a tool for communication?' And then she said, 'Create something, Dad.' I said, 'Okay, I'll do something about this.'"
Sansfaçon saw that the most famous logos for brands like McDonald's and Facebook consist of a single letter, so he created a logo out of the letter "I," standing for "Immunocompromised." The word "immunocompromised" also starts with the letter "I" in several other languages, making the Immunoclip accessible to other countries and cultures.
Louis Sansfaçon wears the Immunoclip on his mask.Courtesy of Louis Sansfaçon
The "I" is designed to look like a "petit bonhomme" — a little character, which in its simplicity can represent people of varying races, genders, and nationalities. Sansfaçon chose to make the "I" the same shade of red as the Red Cross logo so that "your first reflex will be to help, to protect."
On November 26, 2020, Sansfaçon showed his daughter the prototype for the Immunoclip. At the time, only the outline of the "I" was red. Émilie told her father that it wasn't visible enough, and to fill in the "I". "Two days later, she went in a coma, and she never saw the final Immunoclip," said Sansfaçon.
So far, over 4,500 people have ordered the Immunoclip across Canada and internationally. The clip costs $6.50, but many are donating a little extra by paying a flat $10. All donations and profits from the Immunoclip are going to the Fondation CHU de Québec, the Fondation québ´´coise de cancer, and the Association des patients immunodéficients du Québec.
The Immunoclip can be purchased at info@immunoclip.com, or through the Fondation CHU de Québec and Association des patients immunodéficients du Québec websites.