Preliminary assessment of thermal comfort in an operating room

Abstract

A good ventilation system in an operating room (OR) in a hospital is important for providing clean air and thermal comfort to the medical staff members. This article presents the results of a field measurement study conducted in one of the private hospitals in Puchong, Selangor. The purpose of this study is to assess the level of thermal comfort inside the OR. The thermal comfort was assessed by determining the Predicted Mean Vote (PMV) and the Predicted Percentage of Dissatisfied (PPD), based on the measured airflow velocity, relative humidity, and air temperature data. The two values were then compared to the corresponding limit stipulated in the ASHRAE Standard-55. It was found that the PMV indices range between -0.71 and -1.06, while the PPD indices range between 16 % and 29 %. These findings indicate that the thermal sensation inside the OR is slightly cool according to the ASHRAE Standard-55. This shows that the ventilation system currently employed in the OR is not able to provide adequate level of thermal comfort level. Therefore, an alternative ventilation method is needed to improve the level of thermal comfort inside the OR.