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Investigations on the emergency operation status of existing medical facilities to prepare for emerging infectious diseases in the post-COVID-19 era

  • JOURNAL OF THE KOREA INSTITUTE OF HEALTHCARE ARCHITECTURE
  • Abbr : KIHA
  • 2023, 29(1), pp.43-51
  • Publisher : Korea Institute Of Healthcare Architecture
  • Research Area : Engineering > Architectural Engineering
  • Received : February 16, 2023
  • Accepted : February 21, 2023
  • Published : March 15, 2023

LEE Sejin 1 LEE WON SEOK 1 Kim, Eunseok 2 Yeo, Myoung Souk 1

1서울대학교
2서울특별시 공공보건의료재단

Accredited

ABSTRACT

Purpose: To accommodate the increasing number of patients during the COVID-19 pandemic, numerous portable HEPA filter units (PHUs) were installed in the general wards of existing medical facilities(EMFs) to convert them into emergency conversion facilities (ECFs). The purpose of this study was to build a dataset in preparation for emerging infectious diseases in the post-COVID-19 era by analyzing the construction and operation of ECFs. Methods: Field investigations were conducted during ECF operation periods based on the analysis of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HAVC) system design documents for six ECFs across Korea. Interviews were conducted with facility managers during the field investigations. Results: When constructing an ECF within an EMF, the installation status and characteristics of the existing system should be considered. Field investigations and verifications of the operation of HAVC systems must be conducted beforehand for smooth ECF operations. If heating and cooling are required with indoor air circulation type equipment in an ECF zone, the implementation of a heating and cooling method that can satisfy the comfort requirements of the occupants while minimizing cross-contamination is essential. When using PHUs that do not meet the performance standards required by medical equipment, the noise level resulting from such equipment operation must be evaluated and improved. Implications: For EMFs, various guidelines that can be referred to for the construction and operation of ECFs must be developed to prepare for emerging infectious diseases in the future.

Citation status

* References for papers published after 2023 are currently being built.