Conference Agenda

This research focusses on the role and importance of human presence and interactions on the quality and effectiveness of care delivery processes that take place in indoor environments during a (future) pandemic. With these insights the effectiveness of ventilation and social-distancing as a mitigating measure in an airborne respiratory pandemic is researched. In six different healthcare facilities, eight rooms were investigated. The buildings have different construction years, floor area of 5-23 m2 per resident, different ventilation systems and include day activity areas (3) and living rooms (5) within elderly care (4) and disabled care (4).

Used methods involve a (i) technical inventory, (ii) position and distance determination measurements and (iii) observations. The technical inventory is used to gain insight in the building and building ventilation systems. Position determination is done with wearable sensors that monitor positions of persons (residents, staff, visitors) over time and post-processing of data. Observations are done to register contacts between persons as well as the nature and intensity of the contact.

In 75% of the investigated rooms, a mechanical ventilation system is present. However, in most cases, the designed volume flow is not obtained. Analyzing contact time at < 1.5 m and > 1.5 m can provide insights into the impact of ventilation on exposure. Contact time at > 1.5 m is longer for both staff and residents, with large variation between different locations in the room. Most registration occurred around central seating areas (dining tables and sofas). Longer contact times were recorded during meals in living rooms, while day care areas showed longer contact times outside meal times. Residents were involved in approximately 90% of the contact moments and they stay in a room for a longer period of time. Staff, on the other hand, regularly walks between the seats and the kitchen or pantry.

Several decades of research has established that classroom thermal environment and indoor air quality (together, the indoor climate) impact student comfort, health, and learning. There remains a dearth of research on classroom indoor climate and the relevant standards still follow the benchmarks set for adults, even with accumulating evidence that children perceive the thermal environment differently from adults.

To design a fit-for-purpose methodology for studying classroom indoor climate, in a pilot study, we adopted a design thinking (DT) approach. In addition to product design, DT can be applied to design services, processes, and strategies. A DT approach allowed us to engage the end-users and understand their viewpoint. It also helps, through clarification and ideation, improve students’ awareness of real-world implications of poor air quality and the impact of human behavior on air quality.

In such a pilot exercise undertaken in the capital region of Denmark, we engaged students from five classes in a DT initiative to better understand how indoor climate studies for school classrooms should be designed. We covered three of the five stages of DT in the process: Empathize, Clarify, and Ideate. Multiple interaction sessions were organized with the students. We discussed the parameters of indoor climate, the student’s experience of these parameters in the classroom, and how to monitor them. The classroom indoor climate was monitored for two to three weeks. Together with the students, we reviewed the data to ideate on the factors that could explain variation in readings, to brainstorm possible mitigatory steps that could be taken, and to document how they would like to implement indoor climate monitoring. Outcomes of the work include ideation and engagement tools developed and the feedback collected regarding indoor climate monitoring and collecting responses from children.