Editor’s Note

THE POSITIVES OF UNEXPECTED CHANGE

THREE MONTHS AGO, I never would have imagined we would be where we are today. Provinces are rolling back public health restrictions just weeks after the peak of the latest and largest COVID-19 wave of infections, fuelled by a highly contagious variant. Some have even lifted what’s considered one of the most effective measures to limit the disease’s spread — masks. Ontarians are watching these provinces with bated breath as their chief medical officer of health has signalled that mandatory masking in most settings will end March 21, despite signs the new Omicron subvariant is not only more transmissible than its predecessor but it’s also becoming the dominant strain. Like so many, I look forward to not having to wear a mask outside my home, mainly because I’ll be able to see people’s faces again and I won’t have to deal with the irritating side effect of ‘maskne.’ But at the same time, I’m worried about greater virus exposure since COVID is here to stay. What’s more, I have gotten used to wearing a mask in public as part of my pandemic-altered routine, so not having to don one seems strange even though it was completely normal pre-March 2020. At some point, I’ll need to get on with life as (closely to how) I once knew it. However, I nor anyone else anyone should forget the strategies employed to mitigate the effects of an unpredictable pandemic that has both shocked and rocked the world.

This leads into a primary focus of this issue, infection prevention and control, which has received even greater attention of late given measures play a critical role in stymying virus transmission. In Safety Not Guaranteed, author and self-professed passionate engineer Christopher Roberts goes beyond discussing traditional best practices — frequent hand washing, surface disinfection and the use of personal protective equipment — to detail seven steps that healthcare organizations can take to reduce the risk of infectious disease spread in their built environments. Then, the executive director of the Healthcare Surfaces Institute, Linda Lybert, explores the hidden dangers of surface disinfection incompatibility in What Lurks Beneath.

From there, we turn to the topic of security and life safety. Specifically, Taking Flight addresses requirements for the safe operations of hospital helipads. While rare, helicopter crashes do occur, most often at facility takeoff/landing and sometimes with deleterious consequences.

But to begin this issue, we look at The Ottawa Hospital’s new campus. Like so many things, the project has been affected by COVID, though delays have proven beneficial as they’ve provided the opportunity to improve on the facility’s original programming and design so that it’s better prepared for the next pandemic. Here’s hoping it’s a long way off.

Clare Tattersall claret@mediaedge.ca

CHES SCISS

Canadian Healthcare Engineering Society Société canadienne d'ingénierie des services de santé

CALL FOR GRANT SPONSORSHIP & SUBMISSIONS 2022 Young Professionals Grant

DEADLINE: May 23, 2022

CHES is seeking both sponsors and candidates for the 2022 Young Professionals Grant (YPG). The application forms for sponsors and candidates are available on the CHES website.

Call for Sponsors:

• The YPG sponsorship application form must be completed by the sponsoring organization/company and submitted to the CHES National Office.

• The CHES National Office will invoice the sponsoring organization/company for $2,000 once candidate applications have been received and approved.

Call for Candidates:

• Young professionals who are or will become architects, engineers (i.e. mechanical, electrical, power and civil), technicians or similar technical disciplines are eligible.

• Eligible candidates are those working within a healthcare organization or a company supplying goods or services to healthcare facilities or organizations.

• Eligible candidates must be working in the healthcare field for less than 5 years.

• The YPG application form must be completed by the eligible candidate and submitted to the CHES

National Office. In this form, the eligible candidate will be required to provide information on their recent employment and future career aspirations.

• Confirmed candidates will receive complimentary registration for the 2022 CHES National Conference and complimentary membership for the remainder of the 2022-2023 membership year.

For nomination forms, terms of reference, criteria and past winners www.ches.org/About CHES/Awards

Send nominations to: CHES National Office info@ches.org Fax: 613-531-0626