It is common practice to isolate healthcare patients within specialized isolation facilities when they have been exposed to highly infectious diseases. These patients may have been exposed, but not yet confirmed to have the disease, or they may have already been confirmed as having the disease. Such infectious diseases could be transmitted through the air, through bodily fluids, or through other modes of transmission. In each of these cases, and for other cases, patient isolation within an Airborne Infection Isolation (AII) Room is considered standard of care. There is a tremendous need for new systems and facilities that control airborne spread of contagions and provide protection of medical personal within patient isolation facilities.
Throughout the world, various organizations such as the Facility Guidelines Institute (FGI), the American Institute of Architects (AIA), and others have identified building and facilities requirements that must be incorporated into these Airborne Infection Isolation Rooms. These building requirements have been adopted by healthcare licensure and certification organizations such as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), The Joint Commission for Accreditation Healthcare Certification (JCAHO); and must be met to license the facility to operate or certify the facility for governmental and insurance reimbursement of healthcare procedures.
The building requirements for an Airborne Infection Isolation (AII) Room are identified in the Facility Guidelines Institute (FGI) “Guidelines for Design and Construction of Health Care Facilities.” The specific ventilation requirements are identified in the ANSI/ASHRAE/ASHE“Standard 170 Ventilation of Health Care Facilities.”
The general guidelines for Airborne Infection Isolation (AII) Rooms include the capacity of one patient within a single room; a hand washing station within each patient room; an area for gowning and storage of clean and soiled materials shall be located either directly inside or outside of the patient room; a separate room with a toilet, bathtub or shower, and hand washing station shall be provided for each Airborne Infection Isolation (AII) Room.
Architectural details include Airborne Infection Isolation (AII) Room perimeter walls, ceilings, and floors including penetrations shall be sealed. Airborne Infection Isolation (AII) Room doors shall have self-closing devices on all room exit doors; doors shall have edge seals; and window treatments shall be selected for ease of cleaning.
Specific ventilation requirements for Airborne Infection Isolation (AII) Rooms include a negative pressure relationship to adjacent rooms and a permanently installed monitoring device to identify the differential pressure. The Airborne Infection Isolation (AII) Room must also provide a minimum of two outdoor air changes per hour and a total of 12 air changes per hour; all room air shall exhaust directly to the outdoors or be recirculated by means of room units only after passing through a HEPA filtration system. Additionally, the Airborne Infection Isolation (AII) Room shall be designed for a maximum relative humidity of 60% and an air temperature between 70-75 degrees Fahrenheit (21-24 degrees Celsius).
Airborne Infection Isolation (AII) Rooms meeting the requirements listed above have been utilized successfully to isolate patients with infectious diseases including, but not limited to tuberculosis, smallpox virus, swine flu virus, avian flu virus, SARS, and others. However, the use of these types of Airborne Infection Isolation (AII) Rooms has not proven effective at isolating patients with highly infectious diseases such as, but not limited to Ebola virus, Marburg virus, methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), rotavirus, noroviruses and hemorrhagic fever viruses; nor can they be easily deployed in real-world field environments where epidemic and pandemic outbreaks of such diseases occur.
Airborne Infection Isolation (AII) Rooms have been around for decades. However, what is needed are facilities that provide for the needs of the medical personal and provide Airborne Infection Isolation Rooms effective against the highly contagious (infectious) diseases including but not limited to Ebola and Marburg virus, methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), rotavirus, noroviruses and hemorrhagic fever viruses. Further, what is needed are facilities that are easily deployed in real-world field environments where epidemic and pandemic outbreaks of such diseases occur.