PROFESSION-WIDE EXPERTISE
Engineering better ways to control HAIs post-COVID-19
Dr Hayaatun Sillem CBE, HonFIHEEM, Chief Executive of the Royal Academy of Engineering, reports on the encouraging and committed response from engineers – including many individual and corporate IHEEM members – following a call from the Academy at the start of the ‘lockdown’ for engineers ‘to help identify solutions, organisations, and contacts’ that could support the response to COVID-19.
The COVID-19 pandemic has touched almost every aspect of our lives, and posed global challenges at a scale and level of complexity that surpass anything experienced in living memory. Creating effective responses to these myriad challenges is critically dependent on the contributions of a wide range of professions and disciplines. Engineers will be crucial to both developing and delivering solutions across many of these, whether they concern healthcare systems, critical infrastructure, food supply, cybersecurity, or business transformation – and there is no shortage of commitment and passion from engineers to step forward to contribute. From national projects like the Nightingale hospitals and the Ventilator Challenge, to individual initiatives such as small companies pivoting their production lines to make hand sanitiser, engineers have been quick to engage. At around the time that the lockdown was introduced, the Royal Academy of Engineering launched a profession- wide initiative, Engineering response to coronavirus (COVID-19) [
https://www.raeng.org.uk/policy/ engineering-response-covid-19- coronavirus], asking its Fellows, awardees, and partners, to use their combined engineering expertise and UK and global networks to help identify solutions, organisations, and contacts, that could support the response to COVID-19. In the midst of the anxiety and chaos created by the pandemic, it has been truly heartening and inspiring to see the wave of generosity, public spirit, and ingenuity, embodied in the hundreds of generous offers of support, ideas, innovations, and advice, that we have received.
‘‘
Sloan Water Technology taps.
Hospitals on the frontline Hospitals are on the frontline of the COVID-19 crisis, providing critical care to those who need it most. With large numbers of infected patients, and exposure of healthcare workers to high viral loads, there is a significant risk of viral transmission within these settings. The primary strategy for controlling transmission must be for hospitals to follow the government’s infection prevention and control (IPC) guidance
engineers, working alongside healthcare professionals, human factors experts, statisticians, and epidemiologists, can also play an important role in controlling hospital-onset COVID-19
24 Health Estate Journal July 2020
on cleaning of surfaces, hand hygiene, and use of PPE. However, engineers, working alongside healthcare professionals, human factors experts, statisticians, and epidemiologists, can also play an important role in controlling hospital-onset COVID-19.
Rapid Review
Drawing on the rich expertise of IHEEM members and Fellows, as well as other professional engineering institutions through the National Engineering Policy Centre, the Academy has been working closely with government to understand the important role of engineering and technology design and good practice in addressing this problem. This work has resulted in a ‘Rapid Review’ of engineering factors that will influence the
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72
