IHEEM ROUNDTABLE – PART ONE
Academia and engineering – strengthening the links
Strengthening links with academia to encourage knowledge-sharing and ensure that healthcare estates professionals are aware of, and can benefit from, the latest built environment and engineering advances, and academics can reciprocally benefit, was one of the priorities for IHEEM’s Immediate Past-President, Pete Sellars. Speaking in his inaugural Presidential address last November in London, his successor, Ian Hinitt, made clear that this would be a key focus for him too. Before speaking, however, he was among seven participants from academia, the healthcare estates sector, and the engineering profession, in a roundtable discussion that focused on this important topic. HEJ editor, Jonathan Baillie, chaired the discussions, and here reports on the first ‘half’. An article in March’s HEJ will cover the discussions’ second ‘half’.
The IHEEM roundtable focusing on how the Institute and its membership can strengthen links with academia for the benefit of both ‘parties’ – for instance there could be opportunities for those studying building services engineering to gain useful experience within hospital estates and facilities teams – was the third to be held in IHEEM’s 75th anniversary year. It took place at London’s Institution of Structural Engineers just a few hours before Ian Hinitt gave his inaugural Presidential address at the same venue. I (JB) began by asking each participant to introduce him or herself, and to briefly describe their job role and professional background. The process began with a few words from Dr Ghasson Shabha (GS), senior lecturer at the School of Engineering and the Built Environment in the Faculty of Computing, Engineering and the Built Environment, at Birmingham City University, one of two participants to take part by telephone remotely. He explained: “I’ve been involved in research on different aspects of healthcare facilities over the past 15 years, with a particular focus on infection control and critical care facilities. I am currently working on developing a system for monitoring airborne infection, inducting ventilation and air conditioning systems, using smart sensor technology that relays data in real time. I find the whole area of engineering in healthcare quite fascinating, both because of the level of complexity, and the wide range of variables affecting the end-user – the patient. I’m also particularly interested in how we can make the healthcare environment more conducive for healing and accelerating the recovery process for patients with long- term illness.”
Shown from left to right participating in November’s roundtable discussion in London are Evangelia Chrysikou, Ian Hinitt, Kim Shelley, Richard Beattie, and the roundtable’s chair, HEJ editor, Jonathan Baillie.
Ian Hinitt giving his inaugural address at the Institution of Structural Engineers last November.
A strategic role Professor Cath Noakes (CN), of the School of Civil Engineering at the University of Leeds, who also participated ‘via conference call’ was next to speak. She explained: “I’m Professor of Environmental Engineering for Buildings and director of Research and Innovation, so I have a strategic role. I’m also a member of the management team for an EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Fluid Dynamics, which is an effective way of funding PhD studentships; sometimes it’s related to health. My research has some crossover with Ghasson’s; I have a long-standing interest in research around ventilation and airborne infection. My group does a lot of work around computational modelling of hospital environments, and we have conducted experimental studies using both fundamental chamber environments and working directly within hospitals. Most of this has been funded through the Engineering Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), which
supports post-doctoral researchers and PhD students. We’ve also undertaken Department of Health-funded work, for example working around isolation rooms, and still work directly with St James’s Hospital in Leeds, and Hairmyres Hospital in Lanarkshire. I also have some interest around the potential for Masters-level training in healthcare environments.”
Medical architect Next, Evangelia Chrysikou (EC), lecturer at the Bartlett Real Estate Institute at UCL, and Programme director of the MSc Healthcare Facilities course at the Institute, introduced herself. She said: “I am a medical architect, having initially studied architecture, and then medical architecture, at the Medical Architecture Research Unit (MARU) at London South Bank University. My PhD was half psychiatry, half architecture. For the past two years I have been developing a new Master’s Programme on the healthcare environment. My research is mainly on psychiatric facilities, facilities for ageing, equality in healthcare, and technology.” Ian Hinitt (IH), who became IHEEM’s new President at Healthcare Estates 2018, spoke next. He said: “I am currently working as an Interim director of Estates
February 2019 Health Estate Journal 33
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
