Preparing your estate for summer heat

Aremarkable number of people move around healthcare facilities every day, with the NHS dealing with over one million patients every 36 hours, and an estimated 1.4 million staff working within the sector. With such a vast number of people spending time within healthcare buildings, it is essential that estates personnel are well prepared when it comes to effective temperature control. 

Hospitals and treatment centres may be fitted with fixed air-conditioning, but the efficiency of these solutions comes down to a number of factors. If a system is relatively old, it will naturally be less effective than a newer solution that features all of the latest technology. However, all air-conditioning systems can be put under pressure when presented with an increased heat load, whether as a result of a rise in the number of patients and visitors, the evolving use of new medical technology, or the change in use of areas adapted to meet modern practices, standards of privacy, and hygiene. Changes in these areas, or from the rising ambient temperatures since the original cooling load was calculated, may cause significant issues. 

Inefficient air-conditioning can not only result in patient discomfort, but can also cause issues with the effective functioning of equipment and support services such as pathology laboratories, storage of pharmaceuticals, or the support of IT server rooms. While it is difficult to estimate the financial cost to patient care, overheating equipment can lead to periods of downtime, with opportunity costs for a single operating theatre estimated to equate to thousands of pounds per day.