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by HEPACART on Feb 03, 2025
Every day, every shift, every moment, every person who enters your healthcare facility relies on you as the facility manager to keep the air they breathe as clean as possible. However, between dust drifting down a corridor and air contamination hitching a ride on the air in your facility, you’re constantly up against serious risks to the health and well-being of patients, staff, and everyone in between.
These risks are precisely why HEPA filtration can make a real difference in any type of medical center. By capturing 99.97% of particles as small as 0.3 microns, HEPA filters help support and maintain healthier indoor air, reduce healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), and meet the demanding standards your facility needs to uphold.
To truly see the power of HEPA filtration in healthcare, it’s important to first have an understanding of the most common four types of air contaminants you’re up against as a healthcare facility manager.
4 Types of Healthcare Contamination to Watch Out For
1. Dust and Dust Mites
Dust might seem harmless at a glance, but in a hospital or clinic, these tiny particles can carry all sorts of irritants, including dust mites. Although dust mites aren’t known to spread disease, they can trigger allergies, asthma, and other respiratory issues — especially concerning for patients already struggling to get well.
Dust comes from everyday activities, outdoor air, foot traffic, and even renovations. HVAC systems can recirculate this contaminated air if they aren’t well filtered. Over time, particles settle on surfaces and then get stirred up again, keeping them constantly in play.
Discover more about dust mites and how to prevent them here.
2. Viruses and Bacteria
Unlike dust, pathogens pose a direct and serious risk. Airborne viruses and bacteria can linger in the air, increasing the risk of HAIs and extending the length of time your patients will stay in the hospital. In a healthcare setting, even a few extra particles of the wrong kind can mean the difference between health and safety and widespread illness.
These particles spread most commonly through coughing, sneezing, and talking — any of these can send droplets into the air. Without proper filtration, they can float around and potentially settle on surfaces, waiting for the next host.
Explore ways to prevent viruses and bacteria here.
3. Mold Spores and Allergens
Mold spores, pollen, and other allergens may not grab headlines like antibiotic-resistant bacteria, but they still pose serious problems. Patients with weakened immune systems or chronic respiratory issues can experience complications when exposed to these unseen allergens.
Mold flourishes in damp areas — think about that leaky pipe in the basement or a slow-draining sink in a breakroom. Once mold starts, it releases spores that ride airflow throughout the building. The same goes for allergens like pollen, which can drift in through doors, windows, or on people’s clothing.
Discover how to combat the risk of mold and other allergens here.
4. Construction and Renovation Particulates
Renovation and construction projects can breathe new life into your healthcare facility, but they can also stir up a cloud of dust and debris that poses serious risks. Without proper containment, these particles can easily spread into patient care areas, creating respiratory hazards and compromising air quality.
Dust from construction can spread surprisingly easily. Open hallways, gaps around doors, or shared ventilation systems can act as highways, allowing these fine particles to travel far beyond the construction zone. Once they reach sensitive areas, such as patient rooms or operating suites, the risks increase exponentially. Not only can the dust aggravate respiratory conditions for patients and staff, but it can also interfere with medical equipment, potentially leading to delays or complications in care.
Why HEPA Filtration Works So Well
HEPA stands for High-Efficiency Particulate Air, and these filters set the gold standard in environments where air quality can literally make the difference between life and death. They’re meticulously designed and tested to capture at least 99.97% of particles as small as 0.3 microns, well within the size range of common airborne threats found in healthcare facilities.
HEPA filters use three main methods to capture particles:
- Interception: Particles that drift close to filter fibers get caught.
- Impaction: Larger particles crash into the fibers and can’t move on.
- Diffusion: Smaller particles zigzag through the air (Brownian motion), increasing their chances of being trapped by the fibers.
Together, these mechanisms ensure that HEPA filtration consistently captures a wide range of airborne particles and traps them away.
Testing, Certification, and Peace of Mind
HEPA filters are the backbone of clean air in critical environments like hospitals and laboratories. But just installing a HEPA filter alone isn’t enough — it needs to be tested and certified to ensure it is doing the job it’s designed to do. For healthcare facility managers, understanding why this testing matters and how it works can make all the difference in maintaining a safe and compliant facility.
Why HEPA Certification Matters
Certification is a simple way to confirm that a HEPA filter meets the high-performance standards required in healthcare and lab environments. Certified filters are tested to remove at least 99.97% of particles as small as 0.3 microns, ensuring that harmful contaminants are effectively captured before they can circulate. Rather than wondering about the effectiveness of a filter, choosing a certified HEPA unit helps you to purchase confidently and know that you’re getting the best return on your investment.
What Testing Costs and Why It’s Worth It
The cost of HEPA testing can range from $300 to $500 per filter, depending on your filter’s size, testing frequency, and certification level required. While it’s certainly an investment, the cost of skipping this step can be much higher. A failed or uncertified filter could lead to poor air quality, expensive downtime, or risky non-compliance. When you invest in testing, you can keep tabs on how your filters are performing, and confirm that you’re getting the level of filtration that you paid for.
For the best results, you’ll want to purchase a HEPA filtration system that has been tested and certified prior to purchasing it, then test it again both before and after installation to confirm the efficiency of the system in removing airborne contaminants down to .3 microns in size.
The Risk of Non-HEPA Filtration
Using an untested or uncertified filter can create significant problems for the entire facility. Without proper testing, filters may fail to capture dangerous particles, leading to poor air quality, health risks for patients and staff, and potential regulatory violations. In healthcare environments, the stakes are too high to take that chance.
How Do Portable HEPA Solutions Make Healthcare Safer?
Healthcare environments are constantly changing, and your facility needs to be ready for anything. Whether it’s unexpected renovation projects, a bustling patient area, or a last-minute need for isolation rooms, portable HEPA units like our own HEPACART® Classic provide a versatile and cost-effective solution for these challenges. Unlike built-in HVAC systems, portable units can be quickly moved wherever they’re needed, making them incredibly valuable for managing sudden shifts in your facility’s air quality demands.
Whether placed in a patient room, surgical suite, or construction zone, portable HEPA units deliver the same high-efficiency filtration as larger systems, capturing air contaminants before they can spread.
4 Features That Make Portable HEPA Filtration Units a Smart Choice
- Mobility: Lightweight designs and casters make them easy to move to different areas whenever you need them.
- Efficiency: Equipped with certified HEPA filters that remove at least 99.97% of particles down to 0.3 microns.
- Scalability: Ideal for temporary needs or as a supplement to your existing systems.
- Easy Maintenance: Simple filter replacements and simple controls mean less downtime and hassle.
Explore the difference that a HEPACART Classic can make in your facility today.
Power Your Defence Against The Common Air Contamination
As a healthcare facility manager, maintaining clean air is one of the most critical responsibilities you have. From dust mites to mold spores, and airborne pathogens to construction debris, your facility faces a constant stream of air quality challenges. HEPA filtration offers a proven solution, capturing 99.97% of particles as small as 0.3 microns to help create a safer, healthier environment for patients, staff, and visitors alike.
Investing in certified HEPA filters and leveraging portable HEPA solutions like the HEPACART Classic allows you to adapt to evolving challenges while meeting strict regulatory standards. These tools empower you to reduce infection risks, enhance patient comfort, and support staff productivity — all while maintaining your peace of mind.
Ready to take the next step in creating a cleaner, healthier facility? Download our HEPA vs. ULPA Guide to explore how HEPA filtration compares to other air filtration technologies and find the best solution for your unique environment.
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