RECENT FEATURE ARTICLES

Last month saw the Institute’s first ever female President, Alison Ryan, take over the chain of office at IHEEM’s 2022 AGM. She discusses her career to date, her involvement with IHEEM, her goals during her Presidency, and some of the areas where she believes the Institute can have even greater impact.

More and more modern hospitals now rely on medical telemetry systems for the smooth operation of the ICT and communications technologies that are critical to efficient patient care. Here electronic engineers, Tetsuo Endo, Takashi Kano, and Eisuke Hanada, give an overview of new guidelines for the use of such systems in Japanese hospitals.

Speaking at the IFHE’s 2022 Congress in Toronto, IHEEM’s CEO, Pete Sellars, and President, Paul Fenton, argued that the planning and construction of ‘siloed’ hospitals ‘is over’, discussing a very different model for future healthcare planning.

The recent Healthcare Estates 2022 Conference & Exhibition in Manchester marked the exclusive launch of the new ‘Medical Tap Filter Fixed Position’ product by T-safe, the Danish-based water filtration manufacturer.

Stephen Bartlett, an experienced information professional with considerable experience of resource planning, risk management, and healthcare estates management, considers how the updated HTM 03-01, Specialised ventilation for healthcare buildings can – as he puts it – be ‘a catalyst for continuous operational improvements and service transformation’.

Michelle Roe, Technical Healthcare specialist at water solution provider, Whitewater, discusses the impact that water quality has on hospital-acquired infections, and some of the key water treatment methods available to combat the growth and proliferation of harmful waterborne microorganisms.

Dr Louise Webb, Project director, and David Butler, Authorising Engineer – Fire Safety, of DRLC, discuss the changes in fire safety brought about since the Grenfell Tower fire in June 2017, and some of the key legislation, standards, and guidance, in this key area for healthcare estates management teams to take note of.

Sarah Beaumont-Smith, CEO of Fulcrum Infrastructure Group, highlights the impressive way the primary care estate ‘flexed’ and demonstrated its adaptability during, and in the wake of, the COVID-19 pandemic. She believes that ‘what was done at great speed and out of necessity’ has ‘helped to change the mindset’ of how capacity in the primary care estate could be used over the longer term.

Whitecroft Lighting has been lighting UK healthcare for nearly 80 years, with Healthcare Sales director, Karen Bramman, at the forefront since 2001. Much has changed over two decades, and here she shares how Whitecroft tries to stay one step ahead of ‘a market in perpetual motion’

Dr Thomas Bone-Winkel, founder and CEO of oji Europe, explains the potential impact the company believes its hypochlorous acid-based oji active air system could have in eradicating harmful airborne pathogens in hospitals and other healthcare facilities, and thus significantly reducing the chances of infection for patients, staff, and visitors

John McKinlay, Brand manager at CS Medical – a specialist manufacturer and supplier of IPS and medical sanitaryware, washroom components, and furniture for medical use – considers the benefits of, and optimal approach for, specifying and installing IPS pre-plumbed assemblies for healthcare facilities

Over the course of 2022, key updates are being introduced to the Building Regulations in England, Scotland, and Wales. These changes will mean that both new-build and refurbishment projects will need to meet tougher requirements. Jonathan Ducker, head of Regulatory Affairs at Kingspan Insulation GB, discusses the key changes being introduced this year for energy performance.

Polly Barker, director and Healthcare lead at independent architectural, design, and planning practice, tp bennett, discusses how, over the past 11 years, the business has worked on a number of hospitals across sub-Saharan Africa for NMS Infrastructure, ‘developing a flexible, adaptable, and low-impact model for delivering much-needed district and clinic hospitals across several countries’.

Healthcare architect and consultant, Efthimia Pantzartzis, and Nikolaos Pantzartzis, a mechanical engineer with extensive experience in complex public schemes, both of Studio di Ingegneria e Architettura Pantzartzis in Bari in Italy, discuss a recent project to comprehensively refurbish the Surgical Block at San Paolo Hospital in Puglia. They also set out some of the lessons learned on how to successfully undertake such a project amid the constraints and challenges posed by an unexpected event – in this case the COVID-19 pandemic.

A ‘pioneering trial’ at Maidstone Hospital in Kent has demonstrated the effectiveness of UV-C ventilation against bacteria and viruses in a clinical setting, together with the technology’s ability to enable significant energy-savings. Barry Paterson, director of Midtherm UV, a West Midlands manufacturer of UV-C air sanitisation products, reports.

It is often overlooked that water conservation, in all its forms, can reduce expenditure within the healthcare environment, and cut carbon emissions via the mechanisms used throughout the water supply process. Adrian Hibbert, a Commercial and Specification manager at leading UK toilet solutions and water management manufacturer, Fluidmaster UK, discusses some of the options for water saving through specification of more efficient flushing and filling toilet solutions.

Abigail Katovsky, Associate, and Britni Stone, Senior Associate, at NBBJ, discuss some of the most important elements when seeking to make hospital environments feel more homely, comfortable, and noninstitutional, and the significant impact this can have on patient recovery.

Reducing the risk of Legionella is hard-wired in healthcare facilities, but recently attention has turned to another waterborne pathogen – Pseudomonas aeruginosa. According to Public Health England,1 in the year to March 2021, 39% of P. aeruginosa cases originated in healthcare, exacerbated by the increase in hospital admissions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As some of the first healthcare PFI contracts near their end, Lisa Barnes, a Partner at construction and property consultancy, Rider Levett Bucknall (RLB) UK, and a specialist advisor in PFI, discusses a number of key aspects of the ‘handback’ journey that Trusts’ Estates managers need to consider.

IHEEM-registered AE (D), Dr Brian Kirk, explains the importance of using validated sterilisation processes to produce sterile single or multi-use medical devices such as re-usable metal surgical instruments, and the internationally agreed standards covering the sterilisation process and steriliser equipment. He considers both high and low temperature processes, and the key considerations when investing in sterilisation technology, and when faced with the challenge of a new medical device which requires sterilisation.