EP4026530A1

EP4026530A1 - Facility

Info

Publication number: EP4026530A1
Application number: EP22150438.4A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Anthony Wells
Original assignee: Merit Group Services Ltd
Current assignee: Merit Group Services Ltd
Priority date: 2021-01-06
Filing date: 2022-01-06
Publication date: 2022-07-13
Anticipated expiration: 2042-01-06
Also published as: EP4026530B1; GB2602640A; GB2602640B; GB202100149D0

Abstract

A facility 202 comprising: a processing suite 210 having at least one processing room; an entrance suite 204 having at least one entrance room, the entrance suite 204 providing an entrance to the facility 202; at least one intermediate suite 208 having at least one intermediate room, the intermediate suite 208 connecting the processing suite 210 with the entrance suite 204 such that persons can transfer from the entrance suite 204 to the processing suite 210 via the intermediate suite 208, and a ventilation system connected to each of the processing suite 210 and the intermediate suite 208, wherein the ventilation system is configured to maintain a predetermined pressure difference between said at least one processing room and said at least one intermediate room.

Description

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a facility, such as a patient treatment facility or a facility for producing vaccines, and particularly, but not exclusively, relates to patient treatment facility in the form of a hospital which comprises a plurality of patient treatment rooms in which patients are treated.

Background

Patient treatment facilities, such as hospitals, are typically configured to treat patients having different health requirements in different parts of the facility. For example, a hospital may have a specific unit, such as an Intensive Care Unit (also referred to as an Intensive Treatment Unit or Intensive Therapy Unit), in which patients are often immunosuppressed or physically compromised. Such a unit may comprise wards having isolation rooms and/or specialist treatment rooms and equipment for treating patients with particularly severe conditions or symptoms.
A challenge faced by such patient treatment facilities is how to minimise and control the spread of a pathogens, such as norovirus, within the facility and to reduce the risk of infection and cross-infection.
The problem is amplified as a result of the natural concentration of pathogens in a healthcare facility and also at time when a large number of patients are being treated at any particular time, for example, during outbreaks of a particular disease in a community or a pandemic. In such circumstances, patient treatment facilities may not have enough specialist treatment rooms and conventional strategies for reducing risk of contamination may be ineffective and very time consuming.
There exists a need for a patient treatment facility that is better able to treat patients having an infectious disease safely in a way which keeps the risk of infection between patients, clinical personnel and others low.
Other facilities, such as production facilities for vaccines or other health related products, face a similar challenge in trying to minimise and the control the escape of substances used in manufacture of a product from the facility and to reduce the likelihood of contaminants which originate from outside the facility from contaminating manufacturing processes.

Summary of the Invention

According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a facility comprising: a processing suite having at least one processing room; an entrance suite having at least one entrance room, the entrance suite providing an entrance to the facility; at least one intermediate suite having at least one intermediate room, the intermediate suite connecting the processing suite with the entrance suite such that persons can transfer from the entrance suite to the processing suite via the intermediate suite, and a ventilation system connected to each of the processing suite and the intermediate suite, wherein the ventilation system is configured to maintain a predetermined pressure difference between said at least one processing room and said at least one intermediate room.
The ventilation system may be further configured to maintain a predetermined pressure difference between said at least one intermediate room and said at least one entrance room.
The ventilation system may be connected to the entrance suite.
The entrance suite may comprise an entrance lobby via which entrance to the facility is provided during normal use of the facility.
Said at least one intermediate room may have a first doorway via which access to said at least one processing room is provided, and a first door provided in the doorway, the first door having a closed configuration in which the first door hermetically seals the first doorway.
Said at least one intermediate room may have a second doorway via which access to said at least one intermediate room from said at least one entrance room of the entrance suite is provided, and a second door provided in the second doorway, the second door having a closed configuration in which the second door hermetically seals the second doorway.
According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a method of operating a facility in accordance with the first aspect of the invention, comprising the steps of: supplying ventilating air to said at least one processing room and said at least one intermediate room using the ventilation system; extracting air from said at least one processing room and said at least one intermediate room using the ventilation system; determining a pressure difference between said at least one processing room and said at least one intermediate room; determining whether the pressure difference satisfies a predetermined condition, and varying the pressure within said at least one processing room and/or said at least one intermediate room by regulating the supply of ventilating air to said at least one processing room and/or said at least one intermediate room, and/or by regulating the extraction of air from said at least one processing room and/or said at least one intermediate room in order to satisfy the predetermined condition.
The predetermined condition may be a pressure difference that is not less than 15kPa.
The predetermined condition may be a condition in which the pressure within said at least one processing room is less than the pressure within said at least one intermediate room.
The method may further comprise the steps: supplying ventilating air to said at least one entrance room of the entrance suite using the ventilation system; extracting air from said at least one entrance room of the entrance suite using the ventilation system; determining a pressure difference between said at least one intermediate room and said at least one entrance room; determining whether the pressure difference satisfies a second predetermined condition, and varying the pressure within said at least one intermediate room by regulating the supply of clean air to said at least one intermediate room, and/or by regulating the extraction of dirty air from said at least one intermediate room in order to satisfy the second predetermined condition.
The second predetermined condition may be a pressure difference that is not less than 15kPa.
The second predetermined condition may be a condition in which the pressure within said at least one intermediate room is greater than the pressure within said at least one entrance room.
According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a patient treatment facility comprising: a plurality of patient treatment rooms; at least one connecting room arrangement connecting the plurality of patient treatment rooms such that persons can transfer between the connecting room arrangement and each patient treatment room, and a ventilation system connected to each of the patient treatment rooms, wherein the ventilation system is configured to maintain a predetermined pressure difference between each of the patient treatment rooms and the connecting room arrangement. The predetermined pressure difference may be a minimum pressure difference, such as a minimum pressure difference of not less than 15Pa. The pressure difference may be a positive pressure difference or a negative pressure difference depending on clinical requirements. For example, the connecting room arrangement may be maintained at 30Pa. A patient treatment room for treating a patient having an infection may be maintained at 15Pa such that pathogens are contained within the patient treatment room of the infected patient. A patient treatment room for treating a patient having an immunodeficiency may be maintained at 45Pa such that particulates do not ingress the patient treatment room from the connecting room arrangement.
The patient treatment facility may further comprise a transition room arrangement connected to the connecting room arrangement through which persons enter the connecting room arrangement.
The transition room arrangement is configured to provide sole access for persons to the connecting room arrangement. Where the transition room arrangement comprises a plurality of transition rooms, they collectively provide sole access to the connecting room arrangement.
The connecting room arrangement may comprise a lobby connected to a corridor which provides access to each patient treatment room. The transition room arrangement may be connected to the lobby.
The patient treatment facility may further comprise a circulation corridor, wherein the circulation corridor is arranged with respect to the transition room arrangement such that persons transfer from the circulation corridor to the connecting room arrangement via the transition room arrangement.
The transition room arrangement may comprise a first transition room and a second transition room arranged in series such that persons transfer from the corridor to the connecting room arrangement via the second transition room and then the first transition room.
The transition room arrangement may further comprise a third transition room and a fourth transition room arranged in series such that persons transfer from the corridor to the connecting room arrangement via the fourth transition room and then the third transition room. The third transition room and the fourth transition room may be arranged in parallel with the first transition room and the second transition room.
The ventilation system may be further connected to the connecting room arrangement.
The ventilation system may be configured to be operated to maintain at least one patient treatment room at a pressure which is less than the pressure in the connecting room arrangement. This may be referred to as a positive pressure difference.
The ventilation system may be configured to maintain a pressure difference between each of the treatment rooms and the connecting room arrangement independently of the pressure difference between any one or more of the other treatment rooms and the connecting room arrangement.
The ventilation system may be configured to maintain a different pressure cascade between each of the treatment rooms. This supports the treatment of differing patient needs that require either negative pressure cascade or positive pressure cascade. In the case of a patient receiving emergency treatment with a suppressed immune system, the pressure must be positive to the corridor. On the other hand, where the patient has a virus and a pathogen must be contained, the pressure must be negative to the corridor. The corridor remains positive but segregated from the rest of the facility by personnel and/or patient airlocks.
At least some of the plurality of patient treatment rooms may be connected to the ventilation system in parallel.
The patient treatment facility may further comprise at least one of an office, a pharmacy and a washroom.
The connecting room arrangement may comprise a corridor. The plurality of patient treatment rooms may be disposed along a side of the corridor adjacent each other.
Each patient treatment room and the connecting room arrangement may be connected by a doorway. A door may be provided in each doorway and arranged to have a closed configuration in which the door seals the doorway such that the patient treatment room is hermetically sealed from the connecting room arrangement.
Each patient treatment room may have an air inlet in fluid communication with the ventilation system. Each patient treatment room may have an air outlet. The air outlet may be in fluid communication with the ventilation system.
Each air inlet may be provided with a diffuser configured to diffuse air within each respective treatment room.
Each air outlet may be provided with a filter configured to prevent pathogens and/or particulates from exiting each respective treatment room through the outlet. The filter may be a HEPA filter, such as a HEPA H14 filter. Each air outlet may also be provided with a ultraviolet light system on an intake side of the filter which is configured to kill pathogens using ultraviolet light.
The ventilation system may comprise a filtration system configured to remove particulates from air prior to being supplied to the treatment rooms.
The air outlet may be a low-level air outlet. That is to say, the air outlet may be below a mid level of the patient treatment room and proximate the floor of the treatment room. The ventilation system may be an open-loop ventilation system such that clean air is drawn from outside the facility rather than circulating air within the facility.
The ventilation system may further comprise a decontamination system configured to supply a sterilizing agent to each of the treatment rooms. The decontamination system may be configured to supply a sterilising agent in the form of a fumigating agent through an air inlet of each of the treatment rooms. The decontamination system may be configured to supply vaporized hydrogen peroxide as a fumigating agent.
The ventilation system may comprise hermetically sealed ducting through which air is extracted from each patient treatment room. The patient treatment facility may further comprise a plant room which houses the ventilation system.
The plurality of patient treatment rooms and the connecting room arrangement may be rooms of a ward.
Each patient treatment room may comprise fittings for medical equipment.
Each patient treatment room is configured to satisfy a predetermined clean room standard such as Grade D clean room standard or ISO 7 standard.
Each patient treatment room may be provided with a pass-through hatch.
According to a fourth aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of operating a patient treatment facility in accordance with the first aspect of the invention, comprising the steps of: supplying ventilating air to at least one of the patient treatment rooms using the ventilation system; extracting air from said patient treatment room using the ventilation system; determining a pressure difference between at least one of patient treatment rooms and the connecting room arrangement; determining whether the pressure difference satisfies a predetermined condition, and varying the pressure within said patient treatment room and/or the connecting room arrangement by regulating the supply of clean air to said patient treatment room and/or by regulating the extraction of dirty air from said patient treatment room in order to satisfy the predetermined condition.
The ventilation system used in the second aspect of the invention may comprise a decontamination system configured to supply a sterilizing agent to each of the treatment rooms and further comprising the step of supplying a sterilizing agent to at least one of the patient treatment rooms using the ventilation system.
Certain embodiments of the invention provide a patient treatment facility which reduces the risk of contamination between persons being treated at, working in or visiting the facility.
Certain embodiments of the invention provide a patient treatment facility which reduce the risk of a pathogen that originated from a patient occupying a patient treatment room from escaping the patient treatment room.
Certain embodiments of the invention provide a patient treatment facility which improves control of a pandemic infection.
Certain embodiments of the invention provide a patient treatment facility which can be configured and operated to provide a high level of ITU/ICU capacity compared with conventional treatment facilities.
Certain embodiments of the patient treatment facility allow for a wide variety of patients with different conditions to be accommodated on the same ward in respective treatment rooms, which may be adjacent treatment rooms. For example a contagious patient can be nursed next to a patient that does not have the contagion while avoiding cross contamination, for example, contamination through the ventilation system.
Various further features and aspects of the invention are defined in the claims.
Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the meaning commonly understood by a person skilled in the art to which this invention belongs.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings where like parts are provided with corresponding reference numerals and in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic representation of a patient treatment facility;
Figure 2 shows the layout of a floor of the patient treatment facility shown in Figure 1;
Figure 3 shows a portion of the patient treatment facility depicted in Figure 1;
Figure 4 shows an example layout of two adjacent treatment rooms;
Figure 5 is a partial perspective view of a portion of the patient treatment facility comprising a patient treatment room;
Figure 6 is an elevation-sectional view of a the patient treatment room shown in Figure 5;
Figure 7 is a partial perspective view of a portion of the patient treatment facility comprising several patient treatment rooms;
Figure 8 is a schematic representation of an alternative embodiment of a patient treatment facility;
Figure 9 shows the layout of a floor of the patient treatment facility shown in Figure 8;
Figure 10 is a schematic representation of a ground floor of a production facility, and
Figure 11 is a schematic representation of a first floor of a production facility.

Detailed Description

Figures 1 shows a patient treatment facility in the form of a hospital 2. The patient treatment facility 2 comprises three floors, each having a first treatment ward 4a and a second treatment ward 4b.
Figure 2 shows the layout of the first floor of the hospital 2 shown in Figure 1. The first treatment ward 4a comprises a plurality of patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁, 6b₁ to 6b₁₁ and a first connecting room arrangement 8a, 14a having a first corridor 8a. The patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁, 6b₁ to 6b₁₁ are grouped into a first set of patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ arranged along one side of the first corridor 8a and a second set of patient treatment rooms 6b₁ to 6b₁₁ arranged along the other side of the first corridor 8a. In the embodiment shown, there are eleven patient treatment rooms in each set of patient treatment rooms, but it will be appreciated that there could be more or fewer patient treatment rooms depending on requirements. Each patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁, 6b₁ to 6b₁₁ is connected to the corridor 8a to allow persons such as staff, workers such as clinical and cleaning staff, patients and visitors, to move between each patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a_l1, 6b₁ to 6b₁₁ and the corridor 8a. In the embodiment shown, it is possible to move from one patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a_l1, 6b₁ to 6b₁₁ to another via the corridor 8a only and not directly between patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁, 6b₁ to 6b₁₁.
The first treatment ward 4a further comprises a first medical store 10a and a first nurse station 12a which are provided on opposite sides of the corridor 8a approximately midway along the corridor 8a between otherwise adjacent treatment rooms 6as, 6a₆ and 6bs, 6b₆, respectively.
The first connecting room arrangement 8a, 14a further comprises a first clean lobby 14a at one end of the first corridor 8a. The first clean lobby 14a provides sole access to and from the first corridor 8a for persons, including workers such as clinical and cleaning staff, patients and visitors during normal use.
The first clean lobby 14a is connected to a first transition room in the form of a clean general gowning room 16a. The clean general gowning room 16a is further connected to a second transition room in the form of a dirty general gowning room 18a which, in turn, is connected to a hospital circulation corridor 20. In normal use, persons, such as hospital workers, enter the first clean lobby 14a from the hospital circulation corridor 20 by first passing through the dirty general gowning room 18a into the clean general gowning room 16a, and then from the clean general gowning room 16a into the first clean lobby 14a. Persons exit the first clean lobby 14a into the hospital circulation corridor 20 by first passing through the clean general gowning room 16a into the dirty general gowning room 18a, and then from the dirty general gowning room 18a into the circulation corridor 20.
The first clean lobby 14a is further connected to a third transition room in the form of a clean visitor gowning room 22a. The clean visitor gowning room 22a is further connected to a fourth transition room in the form of a dirty visitor gowning room 24a which, in turn, is connected to the hospital circulation corridor 20. In normal use, persons, such as visitors, enter the first clean lobby 14a from the hospital circulation corridor 20 by first passing through the dirty visitor gowning room 24a into the clean visitor gowning room 22a, and then from the clean visitor gowning room 22a into the first clean lobby 14a. Persons exit the first clean lobby 14a into the hospital circulation corridor 20 by first passing through the clean visitor gowning room 22a into the dirty visitor gowning room 24a, and then from the dirty visitor gowning room 24a into the circulation corridor 20.
The first clean lobby 14a is further connected to a fifth transition room in the form of a clean patient transfer room 26a. The clean patient transfer room 26a is further connected to a sixth transition room in the form of a dirty patient transfer room 28a which, in turn, is connected to the hospital circulation corridor 20. In normal use, persons, such as patients, are transferred to the first clean lobby 14a from the hospital circulation corridor 20 by first passing through the dirty patient transfer room 28a into the clean patient transfer room 26a, and then from the clean patient transfer room 26a into the first clean lobby 14a. Patients are transferred from the first clean lobby 14a into the hospital circulation corridor 20 by first passing through the clean patient transfer room 26a into the dirty patient transfer room 28a, and then from the dirty patient transfer room 28a into the circulation corridor 20.
In normal use, access to the first clean lobby 14a from the circulation corridor 20 is solely through the clean general gowning room 16a, the clean visitor gowning room 22a or the clean patient transfer room 26a, as described above.
The gowning rooms and the transfer rooms are rooms in which the relevant persons can dress or be dressed in protective clothing prior to entering the first clean lobby 14a and to remove potentially contaminated protective clothing when exiting the first clean lobby 14a.
A clean ward administrative office 30a, a clean pharmacy 32a, a second clean medical store 34a and a general clean office 35 are also connected to the first clean lobby 14a.
A clean room is a room that can be classified by the cleanliness of the air which is within it. The cleanliness of the air is typically assessed as the number of particles in a predefined volume, which can then be used to classify the room based on national or international standards (e.g. British Standard 5295, Federal Standard 209, an ISO Standard and Pharmaceutical Cleanroom Classification). A standard may specify various requirements that need to be met in terms of construction, materials, operation procedures and disciplines, filtration and monitoring in order to satisfy a particular classification.
The circulation corridor 20 allows for movement around the rest of the hospital 2 to other areas including the second treatment ward 4b, a waiting area 36, which leads to a hospital main entrance 38, a hospital administration office 40, which is situated at a side of the circulation corridor 20 directly opposite the waiting area 36, a washroom 42, which may be accessed via the waiting area 36, and an IT equipment room 44a.
The first treatment ward 4a has external glazing 46a, 48a which extends alongside the rows treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ and 6b₁ to 6b₁₁ on each side of the ward 4a, respectively, and parallel to the first corridor 8a. The external glazing 46a, 48a is spaced away from each row of treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ and 6b₁ to 6b₁₁ so as to provide first and second service corridors 50a, 52a, between the treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁, 6b₁ to 6b₁₁ and the external glazing 46a, 48a, respectively.
The second service corridor 52a is connected to a service corridor 52b of the second treatment ward 4b so as to define an enclosed outdoor space such as a garden or courtyard (which may be termed an atrium) between the two wards 4a, 4b.
Lifts 53a are arranged to allow transfer between the three different floors of the facility 2 and may provide direct access to the outdoor space from the first treatment ward 4a. The lifts 53a may comprise air locks.
A first plant room 54a is provided at the end of the first atrium 50a nearest the first clean lobby 14a and a second plant room 56a is provided at one end of the second atrium 52a nearest the first clean lobby 14a. The first and second plant rooms 54a, 56a house a ventilation unit (not shown). A first stairwell 55a is also provided at the opposite end of the ward 4a to the first plant room 54a to allow transfer between floors and a second stairwell 55c is provided adjacent the first plant room 54a.
The first treatment ward 4a therefore comprises the plurality of patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ and 6b₁ to 6b₁₁, the first corridor 8a, first and second medical stores 10a, 34a, the corridor 8a, the nurse station 12a, the clean lobby 14a, the clean and dirty gowning rooms 16a, 18a, 22a, 24a, the clean and dirty patient transfer rooms 26a, 28a which connect the second clean lobby 14a with the circulation corridor 20, the clean ward administrative office 30a, a clean pharmacy 32a, first and second plant rooms 54a, 56a, lifts 53a, and a stairwell 55a.
An example arrangement of two adjacent first and second patient treatment rooms 6a₁, 6a₂ is shown in Figure 4. Figure 5 is a perspective view of a portion of the arrangement shown in Figure 4 comprising the first patient treatment room 6a₁. Figure 6 is a sectional elevation view of the first patient treatment room 6a₁ in plane parallel to the rear wall.
Each patient treatment room 6a₁, 6a₂ is individually isolated from the other patient treatment rooms 6a₁, 6a₂ and the corridor 8a. The patient treatment rooms 6a₁, 6a₂ are constructed using suitable components, materials and techniques to satisfy 'clean room' grade requirements. For example, 175mm clean room partitions may be used for walls, floor and ceilings, which are also expected to reduce noise levels within the patient treatment rooms 6a₁, 6a₂. Adjacent patient treatment room 6a₁, 6a₂ such as those shown in Figure 4 have a partition wall which is demountable/slides out into the corridor 8a to leave a single patient treatment room having space for two beds.
The first patient treatment room 6a₁ is provided with a sliding door 602 which opens to the corridor 8a. The door 602 forms an air-tight seal when closed to prevent air from moving from the first patient treatment room 6a₁ and the corridor 8a and vice versa. The sliding door 602 is made of glass staff to clearly see patients without entering the space and so limit the amount of contamination contact with hard surfaces. The back of each patient treatment room 6a₁, 6a₂ may also comprise one or more glass portions in order to allow natural light into each patient treatment room 6a₁, 6a₂.
The first patient treatment room 6a₁ also comprises a viewing window 604 adjacent the door and an observation window 606 which is provided in a wall 608 adjacent the second patient treatment room 6a₂. The viewing window 604 and the observation window 606 provide excellent visibility of the inside of the first patient treatment room 6a₁ which facilitates effective observation of a patient within. The wall 608 and a corresponding wall of the second patient treatment room 6a₂ define a recess in which a desk 610 having a chair 612 is provided. The desk 610 is arranged in front of the observation window 606 so that a person sat at the desk 610 can observe a patient in each of the first and second patient treatment rooms 6a₁, 6a₂. A pass-through hatch may be provided, if required.
The first patient treatment room 6a₁ is en suite; having a washroom area 614 equipped with a toilet 616 and a hand basin 618. The washroom area 614 is surrounded by a curtain 620 that can be drawn back, if needed.
The first patient treatment room 6a₁ also has a patient bed 622, a ceiling mounted patient monitoring system 624, a wall utility panel 626 which may comprise power and medical gas outlets, a fold down screen 628, such as a television, and an access panel 630 in the rear wall. The rear wall may have a window in the form of a full-height glazed window.
Lighting and service cables and pipework etc are provided on a roof mounted frame 632.
The first patient treatment room 6a₁ has a ventilation inlet 634 provided in an upper portion of the rear wall of the first patient treatment room 6a₁. The inlet 634 opens into a diffuser 636, such as a fabric air disperser, which is mounted over the inlet 634 and supported by the roof mounted frame 632. The diffuser 636 is configured to diffuse air within the first patient treatment room 6a₁.
The first patient treatment room 6a₁ has a ventilation outlet 638 which is provided in a lower portion of the rear wall of the first patient treatment room 6a₁. This helps provide a flow of air downwards from the ventilation inlet 634 across a patient and limit the amount of air circulating about the patient or other persons in the first patient treatment room 6a₁ before exiting the outlet. A particulate filter 640 is disposed at the ventilation outlet 638 and arranged to filter air that passes from the first patient treatment room 6a₁ through the ventilation outlet 638. The particulate filter 640 is configured to filter pathogens from the air, such as viruses including norovirus and rotavirus, campylobacter, MSRA, c diff, and other microorganisms and prions. In the embodiment shown, the particulate filter 640 is a HEPA H14 filter which is configured to satisfy BSL 2+ containment of pathogens.
The ventilation inlet 634 and the ventilation outlet 638 are connected to a ventilation system 641 (part of which is shown in Figure 3) such that air can be supplied by the ventilation system 641 to the first patient treatment room 6a₁ through the ventilation inlet 634 and extracted by the ventilation system 641 from the first patient treatment room 6a₁ through the ventilation outlet 638. The particulate filter 640 ensures that the air returned to the ventilation system 641 does not contain pathogens and so reduces the risk of transmission of disease via the ventilation system 641.
The ventilation system 641 may be a heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system and may comprise individual systems for supply and extraction of air, respectively.
The second patient treatment room 6a₂ has the same configuration as the first patient treatment room 6a₁, with the exception that the layout is mirrored. This allows for connectors to be arranged in close proximity.
The remaining patient treatment rooms 6a₃ to 6a₁₁ have the same configuration as the adjacent first and second patient treatment rooms 6a₁, 6a₂ and are grouped in pairs in the same manner, with the exception of patient room 6as adjacent the first medical store 10a which is not paired.
With reference to Figure 3, the ventilation inlet 634 is connected to an inlet duct 642 of the ventilation system 641. The inlet duct 642 is connected to a supply duct 644 which is further connected to the ventilation unit in the first plant room 54a. The ventilation unit generates an air supply for the ventilation system.
The ventilation outlet 638 is connected to an outlet duct 646 of the ventilation system 641. The outlet duct 646 is connected to a return duct 648 which is further connected to the ventilation unit in the first plant room 54a. In the present embodiment, air is exhausted to atmosphere and so is not recirculated. Heat recovery is achieved using heat recovery run around coils (not shown) which improves efficiency of heating.
The patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ are therefore connected in parallel and so air is supplied to each patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ and extracted without passing through other patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ or any of the other rooms of the ward 4a or the rest of the facility 2, for example the corridor 8a.
The first duct system 641, which comprises the inlet duct 642, supply duct 644, the outlet duct 646 and the return duct 648, is a welded duct system that prevents escape of particulates/pathogens. An example of the arrangement is shown in Figure 7.
The corridor 8a is ventilated in a manner similar to the ventilation of the first treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁. For example, the corridor 8a has at least one ventilation inlet (not shown) and at least one ventilation outlet (not shown) through which air is supplied and extracted from the corridor 8a. The ventilation inlet and outlet may be connected to the supply duct 644 and the return duct 648 by an inlet duct 650 and an outlet duct 652, respectively. The inlet duct 650 is connected to the supply duct 644, and the outlet duct 652 is connected to the return duct 648. The corridor 8a is therefore also connected in parallel with the patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁. The corridor 8a may be provide with several inlets and outlets space along the corridor 8a which are connected to the supply duct 644 and the return duct 648, respectively. This facilitates even ventilation of the corridor 8a.
Flow regulators (not shown) may be provided in order to control flow rates and/or pressures within each of the patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ and/or the corridor 8a and/or the other rooms of first treatment ward 4a.
The flow regulators may be arranged to control flow through the respective ventilation inlets 634 and/or the ventilation outlets 638 of the patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ and/or the ventilation inlet(s) and ventilation outlet(s) of the corridor 8a. For instance, a flow regulator may be arranged at each ventilation inlet 634 and at each ventilation outlet 638 in order to control the rate of flow into and out of a each patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ and/or the corridor 8a. The flow regulators may also be configured to control the pressure within each patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ and/or the corridor 8a. Ventilation of each patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ and the corridor 8a can then be controlled independently .
For example, each patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ can be maintained at a lower pressure than the corridor 8a, for example at a 15Pa below the pressure in the corridor 8a. This ensures that when the door 602 of a patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ is opened, air flows generally from the corridor 8a into the patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ rather than from the patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ into the corridor 8a. This helps reduce the likelihood of any pathogens within a patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ escaping into the corridor 8a and so further reduced the likelihood of contamination. Alternatively, if preventing infection of the patient is the priority, for example, a patient occupying a patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ has a weakened immune system, the patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ in which the patient is located can be maintained at a pressure which is higher than the pressure within the corridor 8a. This ensures that when the door 602 of a patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ is opened, air flows generally from the patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ into the corridor 8a rather than from the corridor 8a into the patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁. This helps reduce the likelihood of any pathogens within the corridor 8a entering the patient treatment room 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ and so further reduced the likelihood of contamination.
The other rooms of the first treatment ward 4a, and even the entire patient treatment facility 2 may be ventilated using a comparable ventilation arrangement. This enables a positive pressure cascade can be maintained throughout the entire first treatment ward 4a and patient treatment facility 2, if desired. That is to say, pressures in rooms leading to the patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ are held at successively lower pressures so that the net airflow through the facility is from the main entrance 38 towards the pressure patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁. Pressure differences between different rooms are therefore maintained in order to discourage progression of pathogens from the patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ into other rooms of the patient treatment facility 2.
The ventilation system 641 comprises a sterilization system, such as a Vaporised Hydrogen Peroxide (VHP) sterilization system. The ventilation system 641 is configured to selectively supply hydrogen peroxide through the ventilation system 641 to selected, or all, patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ and the corridor 8a in order to sterilise said treatment room or rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ and/or the corridor 8a. VHP is an antimicrobial vapour which can be used to decontaminate enclosed and sealed areas at low temperatures and so can be effective at decontaminating individual patient treatment rooms when sealed by the respective doors 602. Gas tight dampers 634a, 634a are provided at the ventilation inlet 634 and the ventilation outlet 638a of each patient treatment room so that air can be re-circulated during the sterilization process. The ventialation system may be a mobile VHP system.
All of the patient treatment rooms 6b₁ to 6b₁₁ of the second set of patient treatment rooms on the opposite side of the corridor 8a are configured in the same manner as the patient treatment rooms 6a₁ to 6a₁₁ of the first set of patient treatment rooms. Each room 6b₁ to 6b₁₁ is connected to a second ventilation system (not shown) which is configured in the same way as the first ventilation system 641. The second ventilation system may also be used to ventilate the corridor 8a and is provided with a Vaporised Hydrogen Peroxide (VHP) sterilization system, as described above.
The second treatment ward 4b has a layout which mirrors the layout of the first treatment ward 4a, as shown in Figure 2. The second treatment ward 4b therefore comprises a plurality of patient treatment rooms 6c₁ to 6c₁₁ and 6d₁ to 6d₁₁, a second corridor 8b and corresponding third and fourth medical stores 10b, 34b, a corridor 8b, a second nurse station 12b, a second clean lobby 14b, corresponding clean and dirty gowning rooms 16b, 18b, 22b, 24b, clean and dirty patient transfer rooms 26b, 28b which connect the second clean lobby 14b with the circulation corridor 20, a clean ward administrative office 30b, a clean pharmacy 32b, third and fourth plant rooms 54b, 56b, lifts 53b, IT equipment room 44b, and a stairwell 55b, 55d.
Each ward 4a, 4b can be rapidly configured for different purposes and rapidly sterilised between patients.
The hospital 2 may be equipped with a sufficient solar panels and energy storage to ensure that the facility 2 can operate carbon neutral with respect to energy demands.
Figures 8 and 9 show an alternative embodiment of a patient treatment facility 102. The patient treatment facility 102 has a similar configuration as the patient treatment facility 2 shown in Figures 1 and 2 and shares many of the same features. Therefore, reference signs for the features of the patient treatment facility 102 shown in Figures 9 and 10 have been used which correspond with the reference signs of the patient treatment facility shown in Figures 1 and 2, but which start at '102' to distinguish the embodiments. For example, patient treatment room 106a₁ in Figures 9 and 10 is equivalent to patient treatment room 6a₁ in Figures 1 and 2. Only substantial differences between the two embodiments will be described, which are as follows.
The nurse stations 112a, 112b and medical stores 110a, 110b of the patient treatment facility 102 are transposed, respectively, compared with the facility shown in Figures 1 and 2, and so the nurse stations 112a, 112b and the medical stores 110a, 110b are on the other sides of the corridors 108a, 108b with the medical stores 110a, 110b adjacent the atrium.
Only a single service corridor 150a, 150b is provided for each treatment ward 104a, 104b. Each service corridor 150a, 150b extends alongside the first set of patient rooms 106a₁ to 106a₁₁ and 106b₁ to 106b₁₁, respectively, on the external side of each treatment ward 104a, 104b.
The space occupied by the first and second clean lobbies 14a, 14b is substantially occupied by first and second clean lobbies 114a, 114b, which are respectively positioned by a door to the first and second corridors 108a, 108b of each treatment ward 104a, 104b, and first and second clean circulation corridors 114aa, 114bb, which are respectively positioned adjacent each clean lobby 114a, 114b and separated by a doorway.
The clean patient transfer rooms 126a, 126b and the dirty patient transfer rooms 128a, 128b substantially occupy the space occupied by the clean general gowning rooms 16a, 16b. The clean patient transfer rooms 126a, 126b are accessible from the first and second clean lobbies 114a, 114b, respectively. The dirty patient transfer rooms 128a, 128b are accessible from the hospital circulation corridor 120.
The clean general gowning rooms 116a, 116b and the dirty general gowning rooms 118a, 118b substantially occupy the space occupied by the clean pharmacies 32a, 32b and the dirty general gowning rooms 18a, 18b, respectively. The clean general gowning rooms 116a, 116b are accessible from the first and second clean circulation corridors 114aa, 114bb, respectively. The dirty general gowning rooms 118a, 118b are accessible from the hospital circulation corridor 120.
The pharmacies 132a, 132b substantially occupy the space occupied by the clean visitor gowning rooms 22a. 22b, respectively. The pharmacies 132a, 132b are accessible from the first and second clean circulation corridors 114aa, 114bb, respectively.
The clean visitor gowning rooms 122a, 122b and the dirty visitor gowning rooms 124a, 124b occupy substantially the space occupied by the clean patient transfer rooms 26a, 26b, the dirty patient transfer rooms 28a, 28b and the dirty visitor gowning rooms 24a, 24b of each ward 4a, 4b, respectively. The clean visitor gowning rooms 122a, 122b are accessible from the first and second clean circulation corridors 114aa, 114bb, respectively. The dirty visitor gowning rooms 124a, 124b are accessible from the hospital circulation corridor 120.
It will be appreciated that there may be other embodiments of patient treatment facilities which can be configured to meet specific requirements and which have the same benefits as the embodiments described above.
Figures 10 and 11 show a ground floor and a first floor, respectively, of a production facility 202, such as a production facility for producing vaccines.
With reference to Figure 10, the ground floor of the production facility 202 comprises a ground floor entrance suite 204, a ground floor transition suite 206, a ground floor intermediate suite 208, a ground floor production suite 210 and a ground floor plant room 212. Each suite comprises one or more rooms as explained below. A suite may be a single room, a room that is partitioned or a collection of smaller rooms that are interconnected. The suites, and the rooms within each suite, are connected by one or more doorways in which doors capable of hermetically sealing the doorways are provided, as explained below. A hermetic seal is a seal which ensures that when a door is in a closed configuration, a pressure difference across the doorway can be substantially maintained. Doors are depicted in the conventional manner in Figures 10 and 11.
The ground floor entrance suite 204 comprises a plurality of rooms including a ground floor entrance lobby 204a, a ground floor stairwell 204b, a first circulation corridor 204c, a cold storage room 204d, a flammables storage room 204e, a first materials store 204f and a first WC 204g. Access to the facility 202 during normal use is provided through an external door of the ground floor entrance lobby 204a. The ground floor entrance lobby 204a therefore provides an entrance to the facility 202.
The ground floor transition suite 206 comprises a first gowning room 206a and a first air lock room 206b.
The ground floor intermediate suite 208 comprise a first materials access transition room 208a, a first personnel access transition room 208b, a first waste transition room 208c, a second waste transition room 208d, a second circulation corridor 208e, a second materials access transition room 208f, a second personnel access transition room 208g, a second air lock 208h, a pre-processing suite 208i a combined personnel and materials access transition room 208j, a third personnel access transition room 208k.
The ground floor production suite 210 comprise a first processing suite 210a, such as a laboratory room or a plurality of laboratory rooms for producing vaccines or other medical product requiring a cleanroom environment.
The entrance lobby 204a provides direct access to the circulation corridor 204c, the stairwell 204b and the circulation corridor 204c. The circulation corridor 204c provides direct access to the cold storage room 204d, the flammables storage room 204e, the materials store 204f, the gowning room 206a, the first materials access transition room 208a, and the first air lock 206b.
Access to the second circulation corridor 208e is provided via the gowning room 206a and the first personnel access transition room 208b, and also via the first materials access transition room 208a and the first and second waste transition rooms 208c, 208d and the first air lock 206b.
The second circulation corridor 208e provides access to the pre-processing suite 208i via the second personnel access transition room 208g and the second materials access transition room 208f. The second circulation corridor 208e provides further access to the processing suite 210a via the combined personnel and materials access transition room 208j and the third personnel access transition room 208k.
The ground floor plant room 212 is directly accessible externally of the facility 202 and is also accessible from the processing suite 210a.
With reference to Figure 11, the first floor of the production facility 202 comprises first floor entrance suite 304, a first floor transition suite 306, a first floor intermediate suite 308, a first floor production suite 310 and a first floor plant room 312.
The first floor entrance suite 304 comprise a lobby 304a, a first floor stairwell 304b, a third circulation corridor 304c, a second materials store 304d, an IT room 304e, a cleaners room 304f, second water closet 304g and third water closet 304h, a meeting room 304i, and an office 304j.
The first floor transition suite 306 comprises a gowning room 306a, a third materials access transition room 306b and a pre-processing suite 306c.
The first floor intermediate suite 308 comprises a fourth materials access transition room 308a, a fourth personnel access transition room 308b, a fourth circulation corridor 308c, a fifth materials access transition room 308d, a fifth personnel access transition room 308e, a sixth materials access transition room 308f, a sixth personnel access transition room 308g.
The first floor production suite 310 comprise a second processing suite 310a and a packing suite 310b.
The first floor stairwell 304b is accessed from the ground floor stairwell 204b and provides general access to the first floor. The first floor stairwell 304b opens to the lobby 304a. The lobby 304a provides direct access to the third circulation corridor 304c, the meeting room 304i, the cleaners room 304f, the second water closet 304g and the third water closet 304h.
The third circulation corridor 304c provides direct access to the second materials store 304d, the office 304j, the fourth materials access transition room 308a, and the gowning room 306a. The second materials store 304d, provides access to the IT room 304e.
Access for personnel to the fourth circulation corridor 308c is provided via the gowning room 306a and the fourth personnel access transition room 308b. Access for materials to the fourth circulation corridor 308c is provided via the fourth materials access transition room 308a.
The fourth circulation corridor 308c provides access to the pre-processing suite 306c via the fourth personnel access transition room 308b and the gowning room 306a, and via the third materials access transition room 306b. The fourth circulation corridor 308c provides further access to the second processing suite 310a via the fifth materials access transition room 308d and the fifth personnel access transition room 308e, and also to the packing suite 310b via the sixth materials access transition room 308f and the sixth personnel access transition room 308g.
The first floor plant room 312 is directly accessible externally of the facility 202 and is also accessible from the second processing suite 310a.
Access between each of the rooms/corridors of the ground and first floors described above is provided by one or more doorways having a respective doors which are capable of maintaining a pressure difference across each doorway when closed. The exception to this are rooms/corridors which comprise entrance suites 204, 304 and which are accessed from another room/corridor of the respective entrance suites 204, 304 which are not required to maintain a pressure difference across them.
The various rooms of the facility 202 on both the ground floor and first floor may be held at different pressures in order to create pressure differences between adjacent rooms and to create a pressure cascade or cascades through rooms connected in series with each other. A pressure difference between adjacent rooms means that when doors between the adjacent rooms are opened, air flows from the room at higher pressure to the room at lower pressure, as will be explained with reference to Figures 10 and 11 below. The general flow direction between different rooms is depicted by arrows in Figures 10 and 11, and will be explained as follows.
For example, in the embodiment shown, with reference to the ground floor, the processing suite 210a is held at a pressure of 15kPa above atmospheric pressure. The combined personnel and materials access transition room 208j and the third personnel access transition room 208k are held at a pressure of 30kPa above atmospheric pressure. Consequently, opening one or more doors between the combined personnel and materials access transition room 208j and processing suite 210a results in a flow of air from the combined personnel and materials access transition room 208j to the processing suite 210a. Similarly, opening of the door(s) between the third personnel access transition room 208k and the processing suite 210a results in flow of air from the third personnel access transition room 208k to the processing suite 210a. Maintaining a positive pressure difference of 15kPa between the processing suite 210a and each of the combined personnel and materials access transition room 208j and the third personnel access transition room 208k reduces the likelihood of escape of airborne particulates, such as pathogens etc, from the processing suite 210a.
The second air lock 208h, the pre-processing suite 208i, the second circulation corridor 208e, the first personnel access transition room 208b, the first materials access transition room 208a and the second waste transition room 208d are all held at a pressure of 15kPa. The second personnel access transition room 208g and the second materials access transition room 208f are held at 30kPa. The gowning room 206a, the first waste transition rooms 208c and the first air lock 206b are held at atmospheric pressure.
The positive pressure difference of 15kPa between each of the second personnel access transition room 208g and the second materials access transition room 208f, and the pre-processing suite 208i reduces the likelihood of escape of airborne particulates, such as pathogens, from the pre-processing suite pre-processing suite 208i.
The positive pressure difference of 15kPA between the combined personnel and materials access transition room 208j and the third personnel access transition room 208k with respect to the second air lock 208h means that when the door(s) between the combined personnel and materials access transition room 208j and/or the third personnel access transition room 208k and the second air lock 208h are opened, air flows from the combined personnel and materials access transition room 208j and/or the third personnel access transition room 208k into the second air lock 208h. This reduces the likelihood of airborne contaminants entering the combined personnel and materials access transition room 208j and the third personnel access transition room 208k from the second air lock 208h, and so by implication reduces the likelihood of contaminants entering the processing suite 210a.
The positive pressure difference of 15kPA between the second personnel access transition room 208g and the second materials access transition room 208f with respect to the second circulation corridor 208e means that when door(s) between the second personnel access transition room 208g and/or the second materials access transition room 208f and the second circulation corridor 208e are opened, air flows from the second personnel access transition room 208g and/or the second materials access transition room 208f into the second circulation corridor 208e. This reduces the likelihood of airborne contaminants entering the second personnel access transition room 208g and/or the second materials access transition room 208f, and so by implication reduces the likelihood of contaminants entering the pre-processing suite 208i.
The positive pressure difference of 15kPA between the first personnel access transition room 208b and the gowning room 206a, and between the first materials access transition room 208a and the circulation corridor 208e ensures that when respective doors between the first personnel access transition room 208b and the gowning room 206a, and between the first materials access transition room 208a and the circulation corridor 208e are opened, air flows from the first personnel access transition room 208b and/or the first materials access transition room 208a into the gowning room 206a and/or the circulation corridor 204c, respectively, thereby reducing the likelihood of contaminants entering the first personnel access transition room 208b or the first materials access transition room 208a from the respective adjoining rooms.
In addition, the positive pressure difference of 15KPa between the processing suite 210a and the first waste transition room 208c, and the positive pressure difference of 15kPA between the second circulation corridor 208e and the first waste transition room 208c, and the positive pressure difference of 15kPA between the second waste transition room 208d and the first waste transition room 208c ensures that air flows into the first waste transition room 208c when any of the doors of the first waste transition room 208c are opened.
The positive pressure difference of 15kPA between the second waste transition room 208d and the first air lock 206b ensures that air flows into the first air lock 206b when the door between the second waste transition room 208d and the first air lock 206b is opened.
There is no pressure difference between the gowning room 206a and the first air lock 206a, with respect to the rooms of the entrance suite 204. The rooms of the entrance suite 204 and the plant room 212 are at atmospheric pressure. Thus, there is substantially no net flow of air between the rooms of the entrance suite 204 or between the entrance suite 204 and either the gowning room 206a and the first air lock 206b.
The first floor is arranged similarly to the ground floor having rooms at different pressures, in which a positive pressure difference between rooms causes air to flow from the room held at the higher pressure to the adjacent room held at the lower pressure when doors connecting the adjacent rooms are opened.
With reference to Figure 11, the second processing suite 310a, the packing suite 310b, the pre-processing suite 306c, the fourth circulation corridor 308c, the fourth personnel access transition room 308b, and the fourth materials access transition room 308a are held at a pressure of 15kPA above atmospheric pressure. The fifth materials access transition room 308d, fifth personnel access transition room 308e, sixth materials access transition room 308f and sixth personnel access transition room 308g are held at a pressure of 30kPa above atmospheric pressure. The third materials access transition room 306b, the gowning room 306a and the rooms of the entrance suite 304 are at atmospheric pressure. The pressure configurations ensure that when doors between adjacent rooms are opened air flows from the zoom having the higher pressure to the room having the lower pressure.
The facility 202 described above helps prevent escape of airborne particulates that originate in the processing suites 210a, 310a, and ultimately from the facility 202 during operation. The facility 202 also helps prevent airborne contaminants which originate from outside the facility 202 and from entrance suites 204, 304 and the transition suites 206, 306 of the facility from transferring into the processing suites 210a, 310a. In particular, the various different suites may be configured to comply with clean room grading requirements. For example, in the embodiment shown the facility is configured to operate such that the production suites 210, 310 and particularly the processing suites 210a, 310a comply with Grade C of the EU GMP Classification of clean rooms, the rooms of the intermediate suites 208, 308 comply with grade D of the EU GMP Classification of clean rooms, and the transition suites 206, 306 comply with grade CNC of the EU GMP Classification of clean rooms. The entrance suites 204, 304 are unclassified.
All of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), and/or all of the steps of any method or process so disclosed, may be combined in any combination, except combinations where at least some of such features and/or steps are mutually exclusive. Each feature disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings) may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features. The invention is not restricted to the details of the foregoing embodiment(s). The invention extends to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), or to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the steps of any method or process so disclosed.
With respect to the use of substantially any plural and/or singular terms herein, those having skill in the art can translate from the plural to the singular and/or from the singular to the plural as is appropriate to the context and/or application. The various singular/plural permutations may be expressly set forth herein for sake of clarity.
It will be understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims are generally intended as "open" terms (e.g., the term "including" or "comprising" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to," the term "having" should be interpreted as "having at least," the term "includes" should be interpreted as "includes but is not limited to," etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases "at least one" and "one or more" to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles "a" or "an" limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to embodiments containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases "one or more" or "at least one" and indefinite articles such as "a" or "an" (e.g., "a" and/or "an" should be interpreted to mean "at least one" or "one or more"); the same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of "two recitations," without other modifiers, means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations).
It will be appreciated that various embodiments of the present disclosure have been described herein for purposes of illustration, and that various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the various embodiments disclosed herein are not intended to be limiting, with the true scope being indicated by the following claims.

Claims

A facility comprising:
a processing suite having at least one processing room;

an entrance suite having at least one entrance room, the entrance suite providing an entrance to the facility;

at least one intermediate suite having at least one intermediate room, the intermediate suite connecting the processing suite with the entrance suite such that persons can transfer from the entrance suite to the processing suite via the intermediate suite, and

a ventilation system connected to each of the processing suite and the intermediate suite, wherein the ventilation system is configured to maintain a predetermined pressure difference between said at least one processing room and said at least one intermediate room.
The facility of claim 1, wherein the ventilation system is further configured to maintain a predetermined pressure difference between said at least one intermediate room and said at least one entrance room.
The facility of claim 1 or 2, wherein the ventilation system is connected to the entrance suite.
The facility of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the entrance suite comprises an entrance lobby via which entrance to the facility is provided during normal use of the facility.
The facility of any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein said at least one intermediate room has a first doorway via which access to said at least one processing room is provided, and a first door provided in the doorway, the first door having a closed configuration in which the first door hermetically seals the first doorway.
The facility of claim 5, wherein said at least one intermediate room has a second doorway via which access to said at least one intermediate room from said at least one entrance room of the entrance suite is provided, and a second door provided in the second doorway, the second door having a closed configuration in which the second door hermetically seals the second doorway.
A method of operating a facility in accordance with claim 1, comprising the steps of:
supplying ventilating air to said at least one processing room and said at least one intermediate room using the ventilation system;

extracting air from said at least one processing room and said at least one intermediate room using the ventilation system;

determining a pressure difference between said at least one processing room and said at least one intermediate room;

determining whether the pressure difference satisfies a predetermined condition, and

varying the pressure within said at least one processing room and/or said at least one intermediate room by regulating the supply of ventilating air to said at least one processing room and/or said at least one intermediate room, and/or by regulating the extraction of air from said at least one processing room and/or said at least one intermediate room in order to satisfy the predetermined condition.
The method of claim 7, wherein the predetermined condition is a pressure difference that is not less than 15kPa.
The method of claim 7 or 8, wherein the predetermined condition is a condition in which the pressure within said at least one processing room is less than the pressure within said at least one intermediate room.
The method of any one of claims 7 to 9, further comprising the steps:
supplying ventilating air to said at least one entrance room of the entrance suite using the ventilation system;

extracting air from said at least one entrance room of the entrance suite using the ventilation system;

determining a pressure difference between said at least one intermediate room and said at least one entrance room;

determining whether the pressure difference satisfies a second predetermined condition, and

varying the pressure within said at least one intermediate room by regulating the supply of clean air to said at least one intermediate room, and/or by regulating the extraction of dirty air from said at least one intermediate room in order to satisfy the second predetermined condition.
The method of claim 10, wherein the second predetermined condition is a pressure difference that is not less than 15kPa.
The method of claim 10 or 11, wherein the second predetermined condition is a condition in which the pressure within said at least one intermediate room is greater than the pressure within said at least one entrance room.