Oftentimes, local and national protective guidance issued during a pandemic might call upon the use of airborne infection isolation rooms (AIIRs) for patients and/or specific patient procedures. Within U.S. hospitals, AIIRs are patient rooms with specific engineered features, intended to isolate and more-quickly remove potentially infectious patient aerosols. During a pandemic, the demand for AIIRs may exceed their availability. When this occurs, healthcare facilities may choose to use portable fan systems with high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filtration to establish surge AIIR capacity. Although there has been substantial research indicating potential shortcomings when HEPA fan/filter units are deployed incorrectly, there has historically been minimal guidance on how to deploy these units in a highly-protective fashion. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has developed the Ventilated Headboard, a novel and effective solution that isolates patients while protecting healthcare personnel from airborne infectious diseases. The latest version of the technology consists of lightweight, sturdy, and adjustable aluminum framing with a retractable plastic canopy. The ventilated headboard can be deployed in combination with HEPA fan/filter units to provide surge isolation capacity within a variety of environments, from traditional patient rooms to triage stations, emergency medical shelters, or even as emergency/temporary support options for displaced population shelters. For the unexpected large-scale outbreak scenario where a large number of ventilated headboards might be desired in an emergency medical shelter, there is even a do-it-yourself version that can be constructed using materials from your local hardware store.

The ventilated headboard is not a filtration system in itself, rather, it is a special inlet system designed to provide a strategically-improved air intake for a corresponding high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) fan/filter unit. Together, the ventilated headboard and HEPA system can provide surge isolation capacity in either traditional healthcare facilities or alternate care sites. The ventilated headboard’s improved inlet adopts a local control technique that provides near-instant capture of patient-generated aerosol. The retractable canopy allows for hands-on healthcare procedures while still offering protection to attending healthcare personnel. In addition to the direct-capture capabilities of the ventilated headboard, the HEPA fan/filtration system provides continuous air cleaning to the surrounding room air.