Sestre Milosrdnice University hospital and Institute of Clinical Medical Research
Abstract
A review of hospital ecology during the history of mankind is presented. It is noted that hospitals in ancient times and sanatoriums in subsequent historical periods were not accidentally located in natural ambient to take advantage of the most favorable factors of natural environment. Ancient medicine lacked the knowledge of the etiology of many diseases, thus tending to ensure optimal ambient and environmental conditions in the then hospitals. This tendency continued up to the discovery of infectious disease agents. Owing to the significant amount of knowledge and huge technological progress in current clinical medicine, modern hospitals are characterized by immense interpenetration and interaction of numerous factors, producing a major problem of preserving and maintaining the premises as free as possible from the potential adverse effects on both service users and providers. The use of novel materials and technologies entails new problems such as the sick building syndrome. The most important elements of hospital ecology are presented in detail, along with proposals for improvement of the condition in this segment of health care.Razmatra se ekologija bolničkih ustanova tijekom povijesti ljudskog roda. Naglašava se činjenica kako nije slučajno da su u antičkim vremenima bolnice, a kasnije i sanatoriji bili smješteni u prirodnim ambijentima koji su trebali koristiti najpovoljnije činitelje prirodne okoline. Pramedicina je bila bez saznanja o etiologiji brojnih bolesti, stoga je u prabolnicama nastojala osigurati optimalne ambijentalne i okolišne uvjete. Taj se trend nastavio do otkrića uzročnika zaraznih bolesti U modernim bolničkim ustanovama zahvaljujući značajnim saznanjima i velikom tehnološkom napretku u suvremenoj kliničkoj medicini postoji tijesna isprepletenost i interakcija brojnih činitelja, tako da se javlja značajan problem očuvanja i održavanja tih prostora sa što manje možebitnih štetnih učinaka za korisnike i pružatelje usluga. Uporabom pak novih materijala i tehnologija pojavljuju se novi problemi poput "sindroma bolesne zgrade". U radu se podrobno razmatraju bitni elementi ekologije bolnica i daju prijedlozi za unaprjeđenje stanja u tom području
