Main description:

This book collects the main scientific contributions presented at a NATO Advanced Research Workshop entitled "Ventilation and Indoor Air Quality Requirements in Hospitals" that was held in Milan, Italy, from September 13-16, 1995. The workshop was made possible through the funding support of the NATO Scientific and Environmental Affairs Division and was sponsored and supported in part by the International Centre for Pesticide Safety, the Institute of Occupational Health ofthe University ofMilano, the Politecnico of Milano, and the United States Environmental Protection Agency. The workshop was held in the frame ofthe program ofthe NATO/CCMS Pilot Study on Indoor Air Quality and in conjunction with the international conference Healthy Buildings'95, whichwas attended by more than 500 delegates. The contents ofthe book are arranged in sixmainsections. The first section deals with the major issues related to indoor air quality in hospitals, that are reviewed from the North-American, Scandinavian, Italian and Russian perspective. The second section discusses the ventilation requirements in hospitals, with particular focus on design and maintenanceofthe ventilation systemsand provisionofclean air to critical areas, such as infectious disease wards, surgicaltheatres, etc. The third section is directed to chemical and biological air pollution in hospitals and collects papers from surveys carried out invarious countries. Airborne allergens in hospitals is the subject of section 4. New problems have arisen for the health care personnel from exposure to allergens and they are illustrated with studies performed in North America and England.

Contents:

I Indoor Air Quality in Hospitals: the Issues.- 1. Indoor Air Quality in Hospitals: not just Another Building.- 2. Indoor Air Quality Problems in Hospitals.- 3. Occupational Health Hazards following Exposure of Hospital Personnel to Chemical Agents.- 4. Microbial Contamination of Buildings in Temperate Climates.- 5. Indoor Air Quality Problems in Russian Hospitals.- II Ventilation Requirements in Hospitals.- 6. Ventilation Requirements for Hospitals in the USA.- 7. Design Criteria of Ventilation for Hospitals.- 8. Ventilation and Indoor Air Quality Requirements in Hospitals: Filtration and Microbials.- 9. Controlling Aerial Transmission of Aspergillosis, Legionellosis and Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis in Hospitals.- 10. Pressure and Ventilation Requirements of Hospital Isolation Rooms for Tuberculosis (TB) Patients: Existing Guidelines in the United States and a Method for Measuring Room Leakage.- 11. Bacterial Control through Contamination Control in Operating Theatres.- 12. Dynamic Modeling of Indoor Air Contaminant Levels in Medical Environments.- III Chemical and Biological Air Pollution in Hospitals.- 13. Aerosol Size Distribution and Concentration in Various Units of a Children's Hospital.- 14. Airborne Microbial Contamination and Hospital Infections.- 15. Evaluation of Airborne Microbic Contamination in Two Hospital Wards.- 16. Interest of Mycological Controls of the Environment in a Hematological Unit.- 17. Assessment of Outdoor Chemical and Microbial Pollution on Global Indoor Air Quality in Hospitals.- 18. Air Quality in Operating Suites: Evaluation of Microclimate and Microbial Contamination.- 19. Air Quality in Operating Theatres: the Occupational Point of View.- 20. Follow up of Anesthetic Gases Exposure and Health Effects in a Regional Hospital of Northern Italy.- 21. Personnel's Well-Being and Indoor Air Pollution in the Operating Rooms.- 22. Contribution to Treatment of Unhealthy Operating Rooms in Hospitals.- 23. Health Risks due to Chemical Substances Exposure in Biomedical Laboratories.- 24. Cost Assessment of the Sick Hospital Syndrome: a Case Study.- 25. Thermal and Humidity Comfort or Heat Stress in Hospital?.- IV Airborne Allergens in Hospitals.- 26. Immunochemical Quantification of Airborne Natural Rubber Allergens in Medical and Dental Office Buildings.- 27. Levels of Mite, Cat and Dog Allergen in the Furnishings of Hospital Wards.- V Technical Aspects of Ventilation in Hospitals and Strategies for Air Quality Management.- 28. Organization and Management of Hospital Buildings: Healthy Micro-Environment and Quality through Information System.- 29. The Effect of Duct Design in the Air Conditioning Plants on Air Quality.- 30. Design Parameters and Economical Aspects in Ventilation Systems for Bone Marrow Transplant Patients.- 31. Pressure Hierarchy and Indoor Climate of Hospital Rooms.- 32. Reduction of the Hospital ETS Exposure.- 33. Lessons learned from a Legionnaire's Outbreak in the Midatiantic U.S..- 34. Partnering: the Collaborative Approach to Minimizing the Legal and Economic Consequences of Inadequate Hospital Planning.- VI Conclusions and Recommendations.- 35. NATO Advanced Research Workshop "Ventilation and Indoor Air Quality Requirements in Hospitals": Conclusions and Recommendations.