Year: 2012
Type: dissertation
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Indoor air in hospitals is important to both employees and patients. Complaints and problems concerning the quality of indoor air are posing an increasing challenge to occupational health and safety in hospitals. The aim of the present study was to assess the perceived indoor air quality and prevalence of indoor-air-related symptoms among hospital workers. We also determined the relationship between these factors and the condition of hospital buildings and ventilation systems. An additional aim was to find how the problem solution process functions in hospitals from the occupational health perspective. We also tested the usability of nasal lavage in patient examinations. A modified questionnaire was used to collect information on the complaints and indoor-air-related symptoms of hospital employees. Construction and ventilation professionals examined the hospitals. Semi-structured interviews concerning the processes aimed towards resolving indoor air problems were carried out among hospital personnel working in occupational health, occupational safety, and infection control. Nasal lavage was performed as part of the examinations of the employees working in a moisture-damaged hospital ward and a control group before and after the repair. Hospital employees experienced poor indoor air quality and symptoms related to indoor air more often than office workers. The workers in moisture-damaged departments had complaints and symptoms more often than the workers in departments that were in good condition. In hospitals where, for the most part, the ventilation systems were in need of repair, the workers experienced more inconvenience and symptoms than those in hospitals in which the ventilation systems were mostly in good condition. Workers in moisture-damaged departments showed signs of immune-suppression in their nasal lavage samples, and their inflammatory cell counts and cytokine levels were lower than those of the controls. Occupational health and safety personnel considered the indoor air problems difficult to tackle. The roles and responsibilities of occupational health professionals, the technical department, and the employer in solving the problems were not clear. The flow of information between the different parties clearly needed improvement. An indoor air group had been appointed in under half of the hospitals in which the interviews were carried out. These groups were considered good, especially in regard to the flow of information. In conclusion, an indoor air group should be established in every hospital. Indoor air quality should be monitored by conducting regular questionnaire surveys and walk-throughs of the buildings, and by evaluating ventilation systems. Nasal lavage needs further development before it can be applied in the occupational health tool kit for examining indoor-air-related symptoms.
Source: Työväentutkimus Vuosikirja
Author: Ulla-Maija Hellgren
Language: English
Subfield: Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W1775867569