Medical Air Technology (MAT) has recently completed the total refurbishment of four ultraclean operating theatres at Sheffield’s Royal Hallamshire Hospital, working with Kier and NG Bailey.
The company was specified for the project by Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, having worked at Royal Hallamshire successfully a few years previously delivering the total turnkey refurbishment of theatres 3 and 4.
Here MAT supplied a specialist equipment package solution, equipping each theatre with an ECO-flow ultraclean (UCV) ventilation canopy, theatre control panel, and body exhaust system, ‘inclusion of the latest technology and design features bringing the theatres up to the very highest standard’. The project was delivered on time, within budget, and with minimum disruption to the hospital’s day-to-day running, even when all equipment had to be delivered to floor Q, 18 storeys up. Thanks to close liaison between the hospital, main contractor and MAT and a carefully planned programme of work, the project ran smoothly from start to finish.
MAT says its UCV canopies – from its ECO-flow range, are ‘engineered to significantly reduce energy usage and cost, without any reduction in the level of performance’. The company said: “The system uses up to 60% less power than other similar canopies, even in full ultraclean mode. Energy efficiency is achieved through innovative internal design and the introduction of infinitely variable-speed DC motors, while highly efficient centrifugal fans reduce the energy drain required for cooling. The introduction of LED cruciform lighting also improves energy efficiency. The new user-friendly canopies offer larger clean zones and are exceptionally quiet, enhancing the operating experience for clinical staff. The surgeons’ panels provide a central focus within the clean zone for infrastructure controls and the alarms and information required in an operating theatre, allowing everything to be controlled and monitored from one central point.”
The MAT body exhaust system chosen by Royal Hallamshire Hospital ‘offers another layer of protection for patients and users, and works in conjunction with the ECO-flow UCV canopy’. MAT explained: “The surgeon wears a Ventile walk-in gown and an exhaust ‘necklace’ of flexible lightweight tubing with several holes, secured with ties at the waist. Air is extracted from the necklace via a flexible tube connected to a pendant mounted on the UCV canopy. A body exhaust fan and extract unit are installed in the plant room. Any particles shed in the surgeon’s body emissions are extracted through the system via the tube and pass through the ductwork to be cleaned before being released into the atmosphere. Tests have indicated a significant reduction in post-operative infection due to use of the body exhaust system.”
