Constructed by our company, Sahinur Dedeman Bone Marrow Transplantation and Stem Cell Transplantation Therapy Center is the biggest stem cell transplantation center in Europe.

Having approximate 4000 m2 indoor space, the Bone Marrow Transplantation and Stem Cell Transplantation Therapy Center accommodates sickrooms with 40 bed capacities, a full-fletched intensive care unit, an apheresis unit, a laboratory for cell evaluation, polyclinics, an outpatient unit, dispensing rooms, nursing rooms and doctor’s rooms.

Constructed in compliance with the standards of European Union, the center was designed to have single rooms in a way to lower the risk of infection to minimum. In addition to central hygienic air conditioning system, the sickrooms in the center were equipped with the Fan Hepa Filter and thus, enhancing the air change rate to high-level clean room standards. Compare to other similar centers, the instalment of Fan Hepa Filter was done for the first time in our country. In the building, the mechanic liability was undertaken by Demiralp Cleanroom Technologies and the control of mechanic instalment was performed completely through building automation. 

In the hospital, the devices and systems of Alarko Carrier for air conditioning and building management were used including the hygienic 39HQ air conditioning plant with TUV certificate fitting to DIN 1946/4 standard, HEPA filter devices with ESCO fans and ALC Building Automation System. 

Why a Hygienic Air Conditioning System Should Be Applies in the Bone Marrow Transplant Center?

The immune system of patients who gone through the bone marrow transplant experience weakening in their immune system and resultantly, a hygienic air conditioning system should be installed to protect the body that has is vulnerable to infection and to prevent the infection caused by particles, viruses and bacteria in the air. According to the Hospital Air Conditioning Standard (DIN 1946/4), among the conditions of the Bone Marrow Transplant Center and the applications in Şahinur Dedeman Bone Marrow Transplant Center, the hygienic air conditioning system is one of the biggest factors increasing the success rate in bone marrow transplant. For this reason, every stage of the hygienic air conditioning system construction is very important. In order to meet the requirements for the hygienic air conditioner system in accordance with DIN 1946/4, the manufacturing and assembly of air conditioning system – along with channels and equipment, as well as, walls, ceilings and floor coverings -in the Bone Marrow Transplant Center should be carried out by considering the rules of Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP), as well as, the hygienic factors. In compliance with EN 779, conditioned air in hygienic air handling units is passed through G4 and F9 filters in Şahinur Dedeman Bone Marrow and Stem Cell Research Center.  According to EN 1822, the fresh air is blown to the rooms by passing through the H14 class Hepa Filter, which is located on the ceiling of the sickrooms as the last stage filter and blown to the rooms again by passing through the HEPA filter devices with fan.

In order to ensure regular air flow in the room, suction is made through suction channels from the corner walls, as in operating rooms.

Thanks to the proportionally controlled engine of HEPA filter devices with fan, produced specifically for the center, the air exchange could be adjusted between 0% and 100% as desired. The control of the devices could be done both with the special type control panel with LCD screen in the patient room and the building automation system.

Thanks to the VAV devices used in the blowing and suction channels of the patient rooms and intensive care units, the weather conditions of the rooms could be changed as positive or negative as desired. In this way, the hygienic air conditioning system can create negative pressure in patient rooms for patients with infectious diseases.

Acceptance Procedures, Tests and Measurements in the Bone Marrow Transplant Center

Required in the Hospital Air Conditioning Standard (DIN 1946/4), the following tests must be conducted during the acceptance process of the Bone Marrow Transplant Center.

– Particle counting (In sickrooms, operating room conditions should be taken as a base)

– Measurement of air microorganism concentration (microbiological tests) – Confirmation of the air flow direction

– DOP test (During the enumeration of particles, the amount of particles with 0.5 and 0.3 micron diameters should be taken into account). After the enumeration of particles in the external environment, it should be investigated whether the targeted filtration efficiency is achieved or not by making measurements in the relevant area of the hospital. The filters able to capture 99,97 percent (99,97%) of DOP particles are called as the High Efficiency Particulate Air filter (HEPA). The effectiveness of HEPA filters is evaluated by Dioctyl Phthalate (DOP) test.