Increasing Awareness of Safety Risks to Healthcare Team Members from Infectious Aerosols in Perioperative Spaces

In the wake of the recent pandemic, the need to protect healthcare team members from exposure to potentially infectious aerosols has become increasingly evident. Healthcare team members can be exposed to infectious aerosols, such as SARS-CoV-2 and Tuberculosis, in perioperative settings such as operating rooms where blood and body fluids can be aerosolized during a procedure to preparatory or post anesthesia where intubation or extubating processes occur. The expulsion of infectious aerosols designed to move particle contaminants away from the patient are directed to exterior areas of the space before being exhausted.

OnSite-LLC will present a select number of nearly one hundred (100) studies where in-room potentially infectious aerosol contamination levels in areas surrounding the patient were gathered and analyzed. These areas include where healthcare team members typically perform their duties ranging from anesthesia to imaging technicians and circulating nurses. Based upon the presentation of the in-room contamination data, strategies and recommendations on how to reduce or mitigate risks of accidental infectious aerosol exposure to healthcare team members will be discussed by a cross functional panel of facilities, nursing, infection prevention, surgery, and leadership.

Register now. This event is free to ISHE members, $75 for non-member healthcare facility staff, and $295 for non-member suppliers. ISHE membership is the same as these costs ($75 for healthcare facility engineers, $295 for associate/supplier members – includes up to 3 individuals per associate member company). So if you are not yet a member, we recommend that you first join ISHE and get all of the benefits of membership, including free registration for this event!

Our speakers:

Dr. Jennifer Wagner, Ph.D., CIC
Co-Founder, OnSite-LLC

Dr. Jennifer Wagner, Ph.D., CIC., co-founded OnSite-LLC to focus her expertise on reducing the rate of healthcare acquired infections (HAIs) through consulting, education and research. She has worked with prominent healthcare organizations to improve infection prevention. She has also worked with innovative product designers to test the efficacy of their inventions to reduce infection rates and comply with CMS, CDC, Joint Commission and other regulatory agencies. Dr. Wagner is well versed in public speaking as well as providing expert witness testimony. She has been recognized as an expert in microbiology and infectious disease in several superior courts. Additionally, she is published in multiple peer reviewed journals including the American Journal of Infection Control (AJIC), Journal of American College of Surgeons, Cell, Journal of Cell Biology (JCB), and American Society for Heating, Refrigerating and Air conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE).

Damon G. Greeley, PE, CEM, HFDP, CBCP, EDAC, CHFM, A-IPC
Co-Founder, OnSite-LLC

Damon Greeley co-founded OnSite-LLC to further his passion to continuously improve infection prevention in the healthcare built and operations environment through actively engaging innovation and creativity. As a member of OnSite’s research team he actively investigates newer methodologies or technologies that improve infection control coupled with best life cycle costs. He is LUMA Institute (LI) trained, and facilitates human centered solutions interactive sessions that build consensus around the Luma Institutes’ most advanced yet acceptable (MAYA) approach. Damon serves on The Center for Health Design’s EDAC Advisory Council and is charged with educating healthcare engineers on implementing Evidence Based Design. He received his CEM (Certified Energy Manager) in 2004, HFDP (Healthcare Facility Design Professional) certification in 2005, CBCP (Certified Building Commissioning Professional (CBCP) certification in 2006, EDAC (Evidence Based Design) accreditation in 2011, and CHFM (Certified Healthcare Facility Manager) certification in 2016.

Brent M. Lloyd, RN
Surgical Nurse and Contamination Control Professional

Brent Lloyd works with OnSite-LLC to bring twenty-two years of clinical, consulting and contamination control experience with a focus in the healthcare sector. He worked as a Registered Nurse in the OR specializing in orthopedics and as a clinical consultant for healthcare companies with respect to contamination control products or solutions they employ in their facilities. Over the past ten years, Brent’s focus has been processes to deliver the best possible patient outcomes within both air and water disinfection for the manufacturing of medical devices and pharmaceuticals. Brent has been instrumental in helping facilities meet or exceed FDA environmental monitoring system compliance within ISO 14644 cleanrooms or United States Pharmacopeial Conventions (USP) compliance within compounding pharmacies.