A breath of fresh air

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A breath of fresh air

Thursday, 27 May 2021 | S B Shashank

A breath of fresh air

The need for ventilation of closed spaces, which are a hotspot of virus growth, has somehow not received enough emphasis in the fight against COVID-19, says S B Shashank

The world embraced Japan’s advocacy for avoiding three Cs in combating the spread of COVID-19. It’s about keeping away from ‘Crowded’ places, ‘Closed’ spaces and ‘Close’ contacts that the three Cs symbolise. Together, these three refrains sum up what could be called an antidote to causative factors that contribute to the spread of this contagion. They also highlight the ease with which Coronavirus hops from one host to another in certain physical settings.

With variants of concern evolving, the transmission of virus is getting menacingly speedier. This is being witnessed in India since the second wave of the pandemic, with unprecedented ferocity, hit cities and villages last month. While practices such as wearing masks, regularly sanitising your hands and social distancing have slowly found behavioral acceptance, the need for ventilation of closed spaces, which are a hotspot of virus growth, has somehow not received enough emphasis amid the fight against COVID-19. This scenario is likely to change now. Last week, the Principle Scientific Advisor of the Central Government issued an information brochure, which among other things, speaks about ways of improving indoor air quality, one of the key strategies to reduce transmission of COVID-19.

Closed space in our modern architectural setup is unavoidable for the reasons of security, safety, comfort, privacy, energy and work efficiency, and optimal space use. The infection risk of closed door interaction, therefore, cannot be completely avoided. However, the risk can be considerably mitigated with correct interventions. Every person, even if not exhibiting visible symptoms of Covid, is a suspect carrier of the virus. This answers why building control measures should be applied to indoor spaces such as dwelling houses, office, school or hospital so that there is proper air and there is no buildup of virus concentration to a level which could infect cohabitants. Ventilation is, therefore, a necessity.

Ventilation permits entry of fresh air from outside replacing the stale air containing pathogens. This process helps in reducing viral load and thus, mitigates the transmission potential. The recently released brochure stresses on both natural and mechanical ventilation, which will further depend upon the space use and technical feasibility for ventilation type. Dwelling units can get natural ventilation through windows and access for cross breeze but this may even require augmentation by installation of a simple fan or exhaust fan. These are simple interventions which individual households can do on their own without need for much expertise. But, the office and commercial spaces including health facilities will require a well designed mechanical ventilation system consisting of ducts, fans, air filters and other devices as per requirement.

These interventions have special significance for dwelling houses. Ever since the pandemic set in last year, home has become a hub of activities, especially when the work from home is the new norm and schooling is online. Adults and children are spending full time in close physical proximity. In this scenario, homes pose serious concern for indoor transmission of viruses. With one member catching infection, the possibility of passing it to the others in the family increases tremendously. This is evident from numerous examples of entire families getting cross infected indoors.

In India, average family size is five, which implies that one member infected is a potential threat to the other four in the family. This is a significant risk, any effort to counter it will yield proportionate benefit in reducing the disease load. As the clinical treatment guidelines of the ICMR and AIIMs recommend home isolation for mild infections, proper ventilation will be able to reduce ambient viral load and aid in protecting others in the family. In the evolving scenario, when home isolation continues to be seen as an important strategy for Covid management, the architecture of home setting needs a closer look for infusing proper ventilation.

The World Health Organisation, too, brought out a booklet this year on a roadmap for indoor ventilation. It’s about improving and ensuring good ventilation in the context of COVID-19. Depending upon use, this guideline lays the standards of air change rate in different settings of closed spaces. For residential houses, the benchmark standard in terms of air change per hour is lower, whereas for healthcare facilities, it is higher as the risk for cross infection is much more. It also lays down the strategies to be adopted for reaching those standards, both by natural ventilation and mechanical ventilation, such as with use of air extractors, whirlybirds, stacks, ducts and air filters et al.

It’s time to devote some energy and resources on creating awareness about ventilation with special focus on how to equip dwelling houses. It is encouraging that the brochure on guideline has put concern for ventilation at par with focus on Covid appropriate behaviour.

(The author is a serving civil servant in Delhi Government. He was Special Secretary, Department of Health.)

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