Streamlining Surgery: Temperature & IAQ Versatility In The OR
An advance investigation into the needs and preferences of the medical team proved in valuable for a Virginia hospital retrofit. The range of desired OR conditions was demanding, but for good reason. The designers, armed with this info, applied experience and mechanical muscle to provide the environmental flexibility to operate from one patient to the next.
Carilion Clinic is a not-for-profit health care organization based in Roanoke, VA. In line with their mission to improve the health of the communities they serve, and with the intent of becoming a teaching facility, Carilion Clinic set upon upgrading their operating rooms and related existing HVAC systems at the Carilion New River Valley Medical Center in Christiansburg, VA.
Designed in the mid-1990s, the existing HVAC systems were not suited to meet the increasing demands and expectations from the surgical staff. The engineering team from SmithGroupJJR was tasked with designing new HVAC systems for the operating rooms that meet the current and future needs of the surgical staff. Carilion Clinic was looking to improve the efficiency and flexibility of the operating rooms. The requests from the surgical staff were unique from a mechanical viewpoint and led to many challenges in the design process. For example, the staff wanted to book their procedures on a completely flexible schedule, meaning the same room could see a pediatric surgery immediately followed by an orthopedic surgery.