Medical and healthcare facilities including hospitals are some of the highest trafficked buildings anywhere in the world. And they house important resources including the people who need sometimes intensive care and the faculty that serves them.
Today’s healthcare system plays such a vital role in caring for people and is of utmost importance to provide a safe and healthy environment in which to heal – including the quality of the indoor air.
Medical and hospital environments know they need the highest quality of air filtration but are also interested in associated cost savings. In the long run, purchasing the right air filter is just as important as providing proper preventative maintenance by scheduling regular air filter change outs that have a more sustainable impact. Good air filter maintenance also results in avoiding costly equipment repairs and/or increasing operating costs.
Indoor Air Quality Guidelines for Healthcare Environments
A building’s High-Volume Air Conditioning (HVAC) system is designed to do several things besides simply cooling the environment. The HVAC system also controls the heat, humidity, exhaust and indoor air quality for example. Indoor air quality is often controlled and/or modulated in the HVAC system by means of air filters (pre-filters, high-efficiency final filters, HEPA filters, gas phase/carbon filters and/or UV).
Inadequate filtration of incoming air can result in excessive dust particles being drawn into the building. In addition, if an HVAC system calls for use of gas phase (e.g., carbon) filters, without it unpleasant odors and/or harmful fumes may enter the building. Besides filtration, the conditioning of the air by the HVAC system helps alleviate the possibility that occupants may complain of being too cold or too hot.
If a patient isolation room is not pressurized properly, undesirable airborne transmission of pathogenic bacteria may occur. If humidity of supplied air is not properly regulated, excessive moisture can promote microbial growth.
Hospital environments require the highest levels of air filtration and as a result, are usually set up with two- or three-stage filtration banks so that the maximum number of particulates can be removed.
Each stage of air filtration captures the particulate sizes it is designed for; allowing higher efficiency air filters be installed in the final stages so finer particulates and aerosols are removed.
Medical environments require air filters with a removal efficiency of 99% or greater on 0.3 micrometer at resistances comparable to, or lower then, some MERV 14 filters (for example 0.30” w.g.).
You should formulate an air filtration plan, with the help of a knowledgeable and experienced air filter company, that complies with applicable guidelines.
National Air Filtration Association (NAFA) Recommendations for Use of HEPA Filters
According to NAFA, a HEPA filter must have a removal efficiency of 99.97% on particles both greater than and less than the 0.3um challenge agent particle size – making HEPA air filters ideal for removing particles in respirable particle size range. These filters must be properly installed, and in-place performance tested, to assure there is no air by-pass around the filter and that removal efficiency is always maintained.
HEPA filters used in airborne infections containment rooms (AICR) in healthcare facilities must be individually certified in accordance with industry standards, MIL Std 282, IEST-RP-CC1.4. You can find the NAFA guide to air filtration for a complete list of industry standards here.
Any HEPA filter used in an AICR application cannot be constructed with materials that support microbial growth (i.e. wood or particle board frames). If you are looking to minimize the expense related to HEPA air filters, then the use of a pre-filter upstream to remove larger particles is recommended to extend the life of your air filter. If possible, it is best to add a MERV 14 filter upstream of the HEPA filter.
In addition, an appropriate sealing mechanism must be used as well as a housing that is properly contained and eliminates bypass. The filter mounting system must be leak free, rigid and capable of supporting the HEPA air filter. And, the sealing system that holds the HEPA filter in place must eliminate any possibility of leakage between the filter and the mounting system.
Advanced Filtration Concepts, Inc. (AFC) provides the highest quality (including HEPA) air filters, can facilitate your on-site inspection, and schedule regular change outs so you can deliver the highest level of air quality for your healthcare environments. Call us today!
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