BY LAURIE WAGGENER
I
nfection and its prevention have
been headline news for months as
the deadly Ebola virus arrived in the
United States ultimately killing two of its
victims and infecting several caregivers.
While grave public concern had pundits
dispensing questionable medical advice
and politicians making curious decisions,
the medical community from the Center
for Disease Control and Prevention to
clinical staf across the country to medical
planners and healthcare designers were
carefully reviewing infection control poli-
cies, protocols and their implications.
Even as national anxiety about Ebola
abates, people within the healthcare
community are taking advantage of this
renewed awareness of the importance of
prevention measures to educate each other,
as well as the broader public on infection
control. In medical settings of all variet-
ies, infection transmission prevention is
a constant, serious concern. Planners and
designers are on the frontlines in the ef ort,
working with clinicians and facilities staf
on ways to improve prevention from pre-
design programming through specifi cation.
At the pre-design stage, the medical
planning team is tasked with developing a
program to accommodate the scope of the
hospital's infection control goals. Whether
it is as basic as providing suf cient num-
bers of well-located sinks or as complex
as accommodating a biocontainment unit,
infection prevention has space implications.
Taking the long,
whole view
CLEAN
DESIGN
Compass:
Herman
Miller,
Inc.;
Jersey
Shore:
Woodruff
Brown
Photography
Top: Strategic placement of the hand-washing
sink in Jersey Shore University Medical Center
enables nurses to visualize the sink upon
entering the room, while maintaining sight lines
on patients during hand-hygiene practice.
This elevation effi ciently addresses several
challenges designers must answer within a
small footprint such as: no-splash sinks and
uncluttered work surfaces for sterile prep, as
well as simplifi ed access to PPE equipment
and safe access to biohazard waste disposal.
MCDM AG.COM | JA N UA RY/ F EBRUA RY 2015 | Medical Construction & Design
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