The improvement of air quality in health-care settings is a vital constituent of modern airborne hygiene procedures. It is also of importance with regard to occupational health and safety requirements in medical institutions. But, improved air quality not only helps to provide a healthier and more pleasant environment for patients, staff and visitors, it also makes economic sense due to its relevance as a preventative infection control measure.

Air Quality Requirements

The air quality requirements in health-care settings vary from department to department and often even from room to room. Some areas will require high-efficiency filtration of airborne micro-organisms to protect patients, staff and visitors (e.g. in operation suites, ICUs, TB isolation rooms), whereas other areas require the filtration of gaseous contaminants, chemicals and odors to provide a safer and more pleasant working environment (e.g. in laboratories, autopsy rooms, dental surgeries and pharmacies).

Control of airborne micro-organisms (airborne infection control)

The control of airborne micro-organisms (e.g. bacteria, viruses, fungal spores) is of major importance in medical settings due to the fact that a great number of diseases and infections are caused by airborne pathogens and are transmitted via the air.

Hospital acquired infections

Of particular concern are nosocomial (hospital acquired) infections. They can have serious consequences in terms of increased patient mortality, morbidity, length of hospital stay and overall costs. Especially immuno-compromised patients (such as organ & bone-marrow transplant recipients, oncology and hematology patients) are at risk as their immune systems are more vulnerable to infectious pathogens such as aspergillus.

Control of chemical compound & odors

• By Filtration of ambient air
• By creation of pressure differentials
  Containment of chemical compounds & unpleasant odors (negative pressure areas)
• By source capture
  Filtration of chemical compounds & unpleasant odors at their source

Health-Care Applications of IQAir Systems

Thanks to their decentralized nature, patented modular design and unique adaptability, IQAir systems cover a broad spectrum of applications in health-care facilities.

• Ante rooms
• Bone marrow transplant units
• Burn units
• Computer and data storage areas
• Critical-care facilities
• Dental areas
• Emergency rooms
• Filtered fresh air ventilation
• General air cleansing
• Geriatric and elderly care units
• Hematology
• ICUs
• Laser surgery fume and odour control
• Microbiology labs
• Neonatal intensive care units
• Odour sensitive areas
• Oncology wards
• Operation theatres
• Organ transplant wards
• Pathology theatres
• Pediatric isolation rooms
• Pharmacies
• Respiratory sensitivities and dusty areas
• Smoking areas
• TB-isolation wards and ante rooms
• Toilet facilities

Advanced Engineering Techniques

IQAir systems can be used in a number of different ways to help provide the most appropriate air cleaning solution for the specific application at hand:

Filtration by recirculation

Repeatedly drawing ambient room air through a floor or wall mounted IQAir system thus removing airborne micro-organisms with each passing of the air through the filters.

Creating Pressure Differences

The strategy of recirculating room air through a high-efficiency filter can be further enhanced by creating and maintaining positive or negative pressure differences between adjacent spaces and the patient's room, preventing airflow from a contaminated space to a non-contaminated space.

Positive pressure

In the case of immunocompromised individuals, the patient should be placed in a room with a higher (i.e. positive) air pressure, thus limiting the flow of contaminated air into the patient's room.

Negative Pressure

On the other hand, when a patient carries a contagious disease that may be transmitted through the air, such as M. tuberculosis, the opposite strategy (i.e. negative pressure), should be adopted to prevent contaminants from spreading beyond the patient's room. With the help of special ducting adaptors (InFlow, OutFlow) any IQAir system can be transformed to create positive or negative pressure environments. As a result, a room can be pressurized or depressurized within minutes helping to control the spread of airborne pathogens.

Source capture

It is the purpose of IQAir source capture devices (IQAir Cleanroom, FlexVac and VM FlexVac) to filter contaminants at their point of origin, thus capturing the pollutants before they are dispersed into the ambient room air.