By By Dan Hounsell

COVID-19 changed so many things for healthcare facilities, from HVAC system operations to worker protection and even movement within buildings. For one healthcare system, the pandemic went so far as to prompt a major change of direction in the middle of a construction project.

When the University of Virginia (UVA) Medical Center began the design of its University Hospital Expansion, the plan called for expanding its emergency department (ED) and surgical suite and adding a six-story inpatient tower. 

By January 2020, the expanded ED and surgical floor were done. But the COVID-19 pandemic hit as the inpatient tower was months from completion, prompting UVA to make last-minute changes, according to Health Facilities Management. 

The hospital’s leadership met with architects at Perkins&Will to discuss accelerating its open date and redesigning the tower to accommodate more airborne infection isolation rooms.  

The first solution was to temporarily repurpose an existing smoke evacuation system to convert 12 intensive care rooms to feature a slightly negative flow. Combined with three existing airborne infection isolation rooms, the rooms gave the hospital 15 isolation rooms in less than two weeks.

The second solution provided the greatest number of beds for COVID-19 patients. Three 17-foot-high, high-velocity stack fans were installed on the roof to give additional patient rooms negative pressure.