What are Room Pressure and Room Status Monitors?

Differential pressure between two rooms prevents dust, particulates, and pathogens from entering or exiting one room and going into the other. Depending on the relationship between rooms, one room will be under positive pressure when referenced against the other. This positive-negative pressure relationship between two spaces is the main idea behind clean rooms and isolation rooms. To ensure the differential pressure relationship is maintained, a measuring device must be used.

Magnehelic® Gages Monitoring Isolation Room Pressure

Room pressure monitors and room status monitors measure, display, and transmit the differential pressure reading between two rooms. In general, room pressure monitors only monitor differential pressure. On the other hand, room status monitors monitor differential pressure and additional parameters such as relative humidity, temperature, air change, or door status. They are both used in critical applications that require critical low differential pressure relationships.  Continue reading “What are Room Pressure and Room Status Monitors?”

What are Room Pressure and Room Status Monitors?

Differential pressure between two rooms prevents dust, particulates, and pathogens from entering or exiting one room and going into the other. Depending on the relationship between rooms, one room will be under positive pressure when referenced against the other. This positive-negative pressure relationship between two spaces is the main idea behind clean rooms and isolation rooms. To ensure the differential pressure relationship is maintained, a measuring device must be used.

Magnehelic® Gages Monitoring Isolation Room Pressure

Room pressure monitors and room status monitors measure, display, and transmit the differential pressure reading between two rooms. In general, room pressure monitors only monitor differential pressure. On the other hand, room status monitors monitor differential pressure and additional parameters such as relative humidity, temperature, air change, or door status. They are both used in critical applications that require critical low differential pressure relationships.  Continue reading “What are Room Pressure and Room Status Monitors?”

Importance of Sensor Stability in Healthcare Isolation Rooms

Magnehelic® Gages Monitoring Isolation Room Pressure

The purpose of a healthcare isolation room is to prevent patients with contagious illnesses from spreading to others or to keep immunocompromised patients safe from exposure to airborne pathogens. As such, there exist two types of isolation rooms, either positively or negatively pressurized. 

Positive pressure isolation rooms are designed to keep pathogens and outside air from entering the room, i.e. air inside the room is forced outward and is typically used for immunocompromised patients. Like clean rooms, it is important to maintain proper positive pressure within the protective isolation room to keep the patients safe. Continue reading “Importance of Sensor Stability in Healthcare Isolation Rooms”

What is Stability and Why is it Important?

Stability is defined as a change (or lack of change) in accuracy over a period of time.

Drift is commonly used as a specification to illustrate the stability, or change in accuracy over a period of time, commonly shown as X%/year where X = a number; i.e. 0.25%/year. In this scenario, a device with a ±1% accuracy, would be expected to have an accuracy of ±1.25% (1%+0.25%) after a period of one year. Depending on the design, brand, and range of the sensing instrument, the stability can vary widely. Continue reading “What is Stability and Why is it Important?”

USP Guidelines for Compounding Facilities

The United States Pharmacopeia (USP) is a non-profit organization that develops standards for human and animal drugs as well as food ingredients and dietary supplements.

For pharmaceutical compounding facilities, USP has guidelines in four general chapters:

  1. USP <795> Pharmaceutical Compounding – Nonsterile Preparations
  2. USP <797> Pharmaceutical Compounding – Sterile Preparations
  3. USP <800> Hazardous Drugs – Handling in Healthcare Settings
  4. USP <825> Radiopharmaceuticals – Preparation, Compounding, Dispensing, and Repackaging

These four chapters provide guidelines for safety considerations, personnel qualification and training, facilities and engineering controls, microbiology and surface monitoring, cleaning and disinfection, and much more. Continue reading “USP Guidelines for Compounding Facilities”