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Indoor Air Quality in Hospitals: How Is the Situation in Portugal?

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Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health

Part of the book series: Studies in Systems, Decision and Control ((SSDC,volume 202))

Abstract

Hospitals are complex environments where it is crucial to achieve a good indoor air quality (IAQ) to minimize health risks in patients and workers. The main objectives of this work were to summarise Portuguese legislation regarding IAQ, to review IAQ studies performed in Portuguese hospitals and to compare the results with some European countries, in order to comprehend the suitability of current IAQ laws. Studies regarding IAQ in hospitals were searched in PubMed and through cross-referencing. Legislation regarding IAQ was also researched. IAQ is contemplated in national legislation since 2006. There are few studies regarding IAQ in hospitals, but recent ones reported high levels of particulate matter (PM), formaldehyde, bacteria and fungi. Regarding PM, Portugal reported higher values than European countries. This study reinforced the necessity of evaluating IAQ in clinical settings and establishing guidelines to be applied in complex environments such as hospitals and other clinical settings.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge funding support by FCT—Fundação para Ciência e Tecnologia for the project EXPOsE—Establishing protocols to assess occupational exposure to microbiota in clinical settings (02/SAICT/2016—Project nº 23222).

This study was also funded by the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER), through the Competitiveness and Internationalization Operational Programme, and by national funding from FCT under the scope of the EXALAR 21 project: PTDC/GES-AMB/30193/2017 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-030193).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. EPIUnit—Instituto de Saúde Pública, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Mariana Farraia, Inês Paciência, Ana Isabel Ribeiro, André Moreira & João Cavaleiro Rufo

  2. Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Ana Isabel Ribeiro & André Moreira

  3. Centro Hospitalar Universitário de S. João, E.P.E., Porto, Portugal

    Ana Isabel Ribeiro & André Moreira

Authors
  1. Mariana Farraia
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  2. Inês Paciência
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  3. Ana Isabel Ribeiro
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  4. André Moreira
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  5. João Cavaleiro Rufo
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mariana Farraia .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. DPS, School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Pedro M. Arezes

  2. DEM, Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    João S. Baptista

  3. DPS, School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Mónica P. Barroso

  4. DPS, School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Paula Carneiro

  5. DPS, School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Patrício Cordeiro

  6. DPS, School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Nélson Costa

  7. Faculty of Human Kinetics, Technical University of Lisbon, Cruz Quebrada–Dafundo, Portugal

    Rui B. Melo

  8. DPS, School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    A. Sérgio Miguel

  9. Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Gonçalo Perestrelo

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Farraia, M., Paciência, I., Ribeiro, A.I., Moreira, A., Cavaleiro Rufo, J. (2019). Indoor Air Quality in Hospitals: How Is the Situation in Portugal?. In: Arezes, P., et al. Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health. Studies in Systems, Decision and Control, vol 202. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-14730-3_33

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-14730-3_33

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-14730-3

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