MT. LEBANON, PA (KDKA) – To keep the air clean, hospitals use positive pressure in some places to keep microbes from entering and negative pressure in other places to evacuate them. However, in times of COVID-19, hospitals will need additional help.
“We use Nanowave technology as a belt and suspender system to provide additional security,” says Dr. Stephen Colodny, director of infection control and prevention at St. Clair Hospital.
Emily Magee, Infection Prevention Manager at St. Clair Hospital, said, “It was one of the technologies that when we heard about it, we thought that if we were to spread it in the community, we couldn’t go without something.”
To clear the air of bacteria and viruses, including the novel coronavirus, St. Clair Hospital is the first in the region to use the nanowave.
“The device contains UV light that does not escape from the device and inactivates the virus in the device,” explains Dr. Colodny. “The data has been tested by independent sources, the NIH. The data appear to show a decrease in the number of viruses and bacteria in the air. “
St. Clair Hospital has installed wall units in the emergency room waiting room that will be added to other waiting areas, patient rooms and break areas by the end of the year.
“It’s not about the money, it’s always about how much we can do to help our patients and our employees and employees create a safer environment,” said Chuck DiBello, vice president of Facilities and Construction. “So the investment is ours. It is St. Clair Hospital’s investment to do just that.”
The infection rates are continuously monitored.
“With community penetration and exposure outside the hospital, it wouldn’t necessarily be possible to correlate with any technology because all other preventive measures are in place,” says Magee.
And just because the system is up and running doesn’t mean people can go back to normal.
“Regardless of the vaccination, regardless of the nanowave, we still need to use practice to prevent the spread of COVID. This is really to minimize what’s in the air. We want to continue to mask and protect ourselves, our employees and our patients from COVID, ”she adds.
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