Avoid the potential risks associated with indoor air

Have you considered the quality of the air residents, staff and visitors are breathing? The quality of indoor air is an issue that is rising quickly up the agenda, says Clare Noble, head of healthcare for hygiene services provider PHS Group

When managing a care home, there are many competing interests to consider and indeed to juggle. These include legal obligations, health and safety and finances in addition to the wellbeing of residents, staff and visitors. Of course, when you’re caring for people, particularly those who are elderly and vulnerable, there is no room for error. 

In addition, you will want to create the best possible environment for residents, putting their health, needs and comfort first and foremost. However, there is one thing that may not be on your radar even though it is all around you - the air that you and your residents are breathing every second of the day. 

The quality of indoor air is an issue that is rising quickly up the agenda and there is a very good reason for this. In the UK, we spend 90 per cent of our time indoors breathing in invisible pollutants and contaminants and exposing ourselves to allergens, germs and odours. What’s more, while air pollutants may be generated outdoors, concentration levels can be magnified inside a building. The effect of this is that indoor air can be five times more polluted than the air outside.1 

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