Veeck is executive director of the National Air
Filtration Association (NAFA), the trade group that represents air filter
manufacturers and distributors worldwide. This article represents his views and
opinions gained through 22 years of air filtration experience working with
biological contaminants, hospitals and
health care facilities, and cleanroom applications.
While hospitals and
health care facilities in the United States are some of the best in the world,
the chances of contracting an illness while a pateient in one of these facilities
is estimated around 10% of admissions. Several studies and reports estimate
that approximately 90,000 people died each year as a result of
hospital-acquired infections (HAI), also commonly called nosocomial infections.
While many of these nosocomial infections are acquired through other than the
airborne route, there is solid evidence that inhalation of bacteria and viruses
in hospital air can and does cause many additional patient problems.