Assessing Occupational Exposure to Surface Contaminants in Kuwaiti Educational Buildings

The prevalence of surface contaminants, such as potentially harmful bacteria, within building environments in the State of Kuwait is not known.To the authors’ knowledge, this article is the frst of such a report. A total of 342 stool samples were collected from 46 secondary schools to evaluate indoor occurrences of E. coli bacteria within selected lavatory surfaces. After microbiological testing, the results for the spread of the E. coli bacteria were categorized by total count, sampling location dependency, contamination level comparison between genders, and lavatory fxtures (i.e. seat and squat toilets). The results revealed that 7 schools have a bacterial contamination problem, there is cross-contamination between surfaces in the lavatory stalls, the boys’ lavatories were less sanitary than the girls’, and that the squat-style toilets are more contaminated than the seat-style. The results suggest that there is signifcant risk of spread of bacterial infection among students via contaminated hands and surfaces in the lavatory area in some schools. Thus, this study emphasizes the need to improve environmental hygiene and enhanced sanitation in these schools. In addition, conclusions can be drawn as to the effectiveness of the janitorial staff employed by the schools and the effcacy of the cleaning regime used in the lavatories. Furthermore, based on the fndings, there are architectural design consequences as squat-style toilets might be excluded in lavatories designed for schools to be constructed in the future

An Assessment of Indoor Environmental Quality in School Buildings in the State of Kuwait

In this study, indoor quality and environmental comfort were investigated in secondary school buildings located in the State of Kuwait. Comfort variables such as temperature and relative humidity (thermal comfort), noise (acoustic comfort), illumination (visual comfort), as well as allocated classroom floor area per student (spatial comfort) were measured. Data was collected over a 7-month period on a spot basis during school hours in student-occupied classrooms at 46 selected schools. The measured data was then compared to international guidelines and standards related to indoor environment quality. The data for noise and allocated space were shown to be in the comfort ranges in all the schools. However, 11% of the schools are not adequately illuminated, 33% had temperatures not within the recommended limits, and 22% of the schools had humidity levels either higher or lower than the recommended levels. Also, 9% of the schools had low illumination readings.In addition, during the data monitoring, a survey was conducted by which the student occupants completed a questionnaire so that subjective and objective evaluations could be compared. The findings of the questionnaire displayed significant correlations between the measured data and some ailments and other complaints experienced by the students.Ultimately, the results found in this research will provide a baseline for comparison with future indoor environment quality assessments in buildings. Furthermore, recommendations are suggested in order to improve the environmental quality problems encountered in some of the schools, which may be beneficial for policymakers, facilities managers, and design engineers.