FEATURE ARTICLES

At the IHEEM Wales Regional Conference, Anthony Pitcher, Senior Fire Safety Adviser, NHS Wales Shared Services Partnership – Specialist Estates Services, discussed key fire safety challenges when decarbonising buildings

Building on success in delivering its solution for NHS Trusts to manage their PAM submissions, QuiqSolutions, in conjunction with IHEEM, is launching a suite of digital tools to assist in EFM governance and the AE auditing process.

Speaking at a well-attended IHEEM 2023 Authorising Engineers Conference at Epsom Downs Racecourse in July, representatives from IHEEM’s Technical Platforms updated delegates on some of their Platform’s key activities in recent months, and looked ahead to some of the exciting initiatives and work they have planned. HEJ editor, Jonathan Baillie, reports.

Duane Passman, FIHEEM, Co-Chair of IHEEM’s Diversity and Inclusion Working Group, reports on the Group’s work since it was formed six years ago.

Dr. Amy Drahota, from the University of Portsmouth, and Dr. Iman Mohagheghian, from the University of Surrey, discuss an often-overlooked consideration for flooring decision-makers – that of shock-absorbency, and the impact of installing shock-absorbent flooring on patient fall-related injuries and staff safety.

David Pownall, Vice-President of Services at Schneider Electric UK & Ireland, explains how digitisation of power management, and deployment of ‘intelligent’ building management systems in healthcare facilities, can bring considerable benefits for healthcare Estates and Facilities managers – not only supporting their drive towards Net Zero, and cutting cost and emissions, but also helping them get the optimal performance, efficiency, and reliability, from their equipment.

A new 28-bedded ‘concept ward’ combining single-bedded en-suite rooms with four-bed bays, built by Health Spaces at James Paget University Hospital, will be used both to house patients while RAAC panel remediation is undertaken, and to enable the Trust operating the hospital to evaluate the ‘pros and cons’ of single-bedded rooms versus multi-bed patient accommodation.

IHEEM-registered AEs (Water), Steve Mount and Harry Evans, warn that it is imperative to make a judicious choice of risk assessor and water hygiene contractor as part of a concerted and effective strategy to combat Legionella in healthcare water systems.

Delivering the New Hospital Programme will require a clear and shared vision from the NHS Trusts, contractors, and suppliers involved. Head of Market Management, Emma Whigham, explains how the team developed its own ‘delivery scorecard’, ‘so that all sides fully understand the strategic aims and ambitions’

Giving the opening keynote on the first day of IHEEM’s Wales Regional Conference in Cardiff in May, Judith Paget CBE, Director General of Health and Social Services, and CEO, NHS Wales, discussed ‘what Wales’s future healthcare estate needs to look like’, and some of the challenges and opportunities for EFM personnel working at the country’s NHS Health Boards and Trusts. HEJ editor, Jonathan Baillie, reports.

Giving a keynote on the first morning of the IHEEM Wales Regional Conference, Stuart Douglas, Director, NHS Wales Shared Services Partnership – Specialist Estates Services, set out some of the priorities and challenges for those working in healthcare engineering and estate management roles across the Welsh NHS.

Albin Knauder, Daniel Kreuzer, and Bernhard Zahrl of Hospitaller Order of Saint John of God, one of Austria’s largest private non-profit healthcare providers, analyse how the twin aims of providing high-quality 21st century healthcare, and pursuing a ‘carbon neutral’ policy, can be reconciled.

Dr Khairul Azmy Kamaluddin, Ts Noor Muhammad Abd Rahman, and Dr Muhammad Syukri Imran Abdullah, discuss the advancement of sustainability programmes by the Malaysian Ministry of Health (MOH) to reduce carbon emissions within the country’s public healthcare sector.

P4, a leading UK emergency lighting specialist, and its FASTEL self-testing technology, have been ‘at the forefront of emergency lighting for over 30 years’.

Frank Butterworth, Technical director at water hygiene, treatment, and equipment specialist, Goodwater, discusses the various strategies that have been used over the years to combat the growth and proliferation of Legionella in healthcare water systems. He particularly focuses on the advantages, in combating the bacterium, of monochloramine as a secondary disinfectant in buildings’ water systems, compared with using other chlorine-based disinfectants.

The global commitment to achieving Net Zero carbon emissions has led numerous industries to seek sustainable solutions. For the healthcare sector, says Haigh Customer Service lead, Wendy Andrews, a simple yet significant contribution to this goal lies in an often overlooked corner – the sluice room, and the opportunities for enhanced efficiencies there.

Paul Marsden, Public Health Technical Specification manager at Baxi, and Chair of the Society of Public Health Engineers (SoPHE) Industry Working Group, discusses the challenges and opportunities for NHS Estates and Facilities managers surrounding the decarbonisation of domestic hot water. He argues that the high hot water demand frequently associated with healthcare premises makes it a clear focus for reduction in associated energy use and emissions.

Steven Van De Peer, an Authorising Engineer (Water) at Tetra Consulting, discusses what he believes are ‘some of the opportunities for the UK to lead’ in the design of hospital wastewater systems.

The Maternity Unit at Copenhagen’s Hvidovre Hospital has recently reintroduced nitrous oxide to support women in labour pain, having ceased using it a decade ago due to concerns over potential health risks to staff. Denmark has since, however, developed new safety protocols for N2O use, and with the gas a highly effective analgesic, the hospital wanted to reintroduce it, but needed to address its substantial climate footprint. Jannik Jensen, Global Product manager at Medclair, and his colleague, R&D manager, Olesya Nikonova, explain how a Medclair central nitrous oxide destruction system met the brief.

Brook Smith, Partner at independent property consultants, RLB, discusses six-facet surveys’ key part in supporting healthcare estates and facilities management personnel meet their sustainability targets, and work towards the objectives in their Green Plans.