Hospitals are vital institutions in society. And their significance has been heavily punctuated when the COVID-19 pandemic took over the globe. Apart from the equipment and the personnel, it’s important to turn our attention to the design itself. And this is when civil and structural engineers in Hull become very crucial. By incorporating good hospital building design, health care provisions can become safer and more efficient.
Here are eight engineering trends every construction expert must know.
Using materials that are more resistant against microbes. As many diseases can rapidly spread through surface transmission, people in the construction industry — including civil engineers in Hull — are now prompted to use building materials that are more resistant to microbes. For instance, copper has been found to be less hospitable to pathogens compared with aluminum or stainless steel. Instead of using traditional window curtains, smart glasses can be used to lessen the risk of contamination and make disinfection much easier.
Adding more flexibility. The sudden surge of COVID-19 patients has pushed many healthcare facilities across and beyond the UK to their limits — to the point that schools and hotels have been converted into temporary hospitals. With this in mind, the hospitals of the future should add more flexibility. Specific spaces (e.g. Parking area, conference rooms) should be designed in a way that they can serve as patients’ rooms in the event of a pandemic or any other occasion that can escalate hospital admittance demand. When making these spaces more flexible, construction personnel should incorporate other aspects like heating and ventilation.
Maximizing technology. As structural engineers in Hull can attest to, more and more buildings are now becoming smarter. And the hospitals shouldn’t be an exception. Healthcare edifices should be equipped with more technology-enabled features, like touch-free controls for light, temperature, etc., and IT-powered communications among medical experts and staff, among patients (especially those in isolation facilities) and their loved ones.
Incorporating virtual care. Teleconsultations have become the trend over the past year because of COVID-19. This has opened the doors as to how medical consultations can be more safely and efficiently facilitated. But apart from incorporating virtual care in hospitals and clinics themselves, there’s also now a talk about how to make transportation to hospitals safer and more direct through specially dedicated routes.
Providing respite for the healthcare workforce. More-than-enough pieces of evidence are out there to prove how overworked the healthcare workforce is. And to help them become more effective in their job — and give the respite they need — hospitals should allocate more rooms where their workers can sleep and take a rest. More amenities like exercise facilities and healthier foodservice should also be incorporated.
Making hospital spaces greener. As people demand for enhanced wellbeing in hospital settings, architects, designers, and structural and civil engineers in Hull are expected to incorporate greener spaces in healthcare environments. By being more eco-friendly, the healing process can be better facilitated. Apart from adding more greens, a hospital can be more environmentally conscious by employing more efficient waste management processes and stricter designations of smoking areas.
GGP Consult consists of structural engineers in Hulland civil engineers in Hull who are among the best in the industry. Contact us today and let’s discuss how we can be of service to you.
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