Evaluation Of Natural Ventilation Condition In Selected Healthcare Facilities In Adama City, Ethiopia.

Abstract

The Design Of Healthcare Facilities Must Provide Quality Indoor Air Quality For The Dwellers. It Must Be Designed To Have Adequate Natural Ventilation And Good Air Circulation To Provide A Comfortable Indoor Environment Quality (IEQ) For The Patients And Workers. In Adama City, Many Healthcare Facilities Have Poor Access To Natural Ventilation. They Have Small Openings, Aren't Orientated Against the Wind, Lack Cross Ventilation, And Have Limited Access to Natural Ventilation As A Result Of Their Poor Design. Therefore, The Purpose Of This Study Is To Evaluate The State Of Natural Ventilation In Existing Healthcare Facilities. To Do So, The Study Have Examined The Natural Ventilation Rate (NVR), Air Change Per Hour (Ach), Flow Direction, And Floor To Opening Ratio. Ambient Temperature (Inside and Outside), Humidity and Air Velocity Rate Were Measured Under Three Different Types of Opening Condition for Three Consecutive Days During Mid Of July And August. The Data Obtained From The Measurement Was Analyzed Using MS Excel And Calculated Using Rule Of Thumb. The Result From The Analysis Indicates That, The Corridor Spaces And Maternal Ward Has No Cross Ventilation. Whereas The General Ward And Airborne Infectious Disease Ward (AIDW) Has Cross Ventilation. The NVR Of Corridor Spaces Is 1.43 L/S/M3. The General Wards NVR Is 47 L/S/P. Whereas The NVR Of AIDW Is 61 L/S/P. The Ach Value Of The Corridor Spaces Are 0.16 In Average. The General Wards Ach Value Is 1.8 and 2.12. The AIDW???S Ach Value Is 2.27. According To The Standard Guidelines Of Who And Ethiopian Natural Ventilation For Infectious Control In Healthcare Standard, The Corridor Space Fulfils Almost 60 % Of Minimum Required Standard Values. The General Wards and AIDW Fulfil Almost 80 % And 40 % of Minimum Required NVR Standards. Which Indicates That, The Spaces Of Corridor, General Wards, And AIDW Are Not Up To The Standard To Provide Enough Natural Ventilation. The Research Suggested Increasing Of Existing Opening Dimension And Providing Cross Ventilation Will Help To Achieve The Minimum Required NVR Standard. The Optimized Result Suggests, The Corridor Space And General Ward Should Double The Existing Opening Dimension And AIDW Should Have Four Times Larger Opening Size To Achieve The Minimum NVR Standard. In Conclusion, All Subjected Spaces Are Not Up To The Standard To Provide Enough Natural Ventilation Rate. The Modification Will Enable The Spaces To Achieve The Minimum Required Value Of NVR Suggested By The Standard. Apart From Modification, The Access Of Cross Ventilation And Proper Design Orientation Will Improve The Condition Of Natural Ventilation.