Hospitals, clinics, laboratories, and other institutions depend on maintaining adequate temperatures to ensure proper preservation of sensitive materials used in their activities.

Properly preserving medications, vaccines, serum, blood, tissues, organs for transplantation and many other items is essential to guarantee the best conditions in treatments and preventive activities in the medical area. Refrigeration and air conditioning equipment and systems play a fundamental role in this task. That opens up very good opportunities for those who work in the area, but it requires knowledge and a lot of responsibility.

The field of health services has grown a lot in recent years and is tending to develop even more. Technology has advanced rapidly in this area, making it possible to offer new treatments and improve the living conditions of millions of people. The complexity of the services offered in hospitals and specialized clinics is directly associated with the use of increasingly modern equipment and techniques, as well as the creation of new drugs. In many cases, refrigeration and air conditioning have become indispensable resources for the procedures to be carried out and for the most diverse materials to be kept in the ideal conditions.

There are, for example, various types of drugs that need to be kept under refrigeration. The same occurs with vaccines, serums, blood bags, as well as tissues and organs for transplantation. When these products deteriorate due to lack of adequate storage, the financial prejudice is great, due to their high cost. Additionally, their lack can generate serious consequences for the health of those who would need to receive them.

New directions in medicine open up other fields

The advancement of technology in medicine results in the constant creation of new specialties – which, in general, use refrigeration in their activities. This is the case of assisted reproduction clinics, for those who face difficulties in having children. Today there are many of them, which need special equipment and care to preserve sperm, eggs and embryos at temperatures below -100 ° C. A few years ago, a new specialty emerged, based on research related to the use of stem cells from blood, umbilical cord tissue and tooth pulp. These cells must be preserved under special conditions, to enable their use when necessary. For this, the cryopreservation process is used. Stored in appropriate bags, these materials are subjected to a programmed gradual freezing, eventually reaching a temperature close to -200 ° C. The refrigeration systems used for this specialty, also called cryogenics, are advanced, but they need constant monitoring and preventive maintenance: losses, in case of malfunction, are irrecoverable.

Importance of refrigerators and freezers in health institutions

Refrigerators and freezers guarantee the preservation of substances by generating and maintaining negative temperatures down to thermal levels. For optimal operation, they must meet certain characteristics, such as optimized thermal insulation, temperature maintenance and the ability to program and regulate the temperature with the support of electronic alarms that notify the laboratory staff of breakdowns or malfunctions.

For optimal operation, the refrigerator should be located in a cool and ventilated environment with at least one window, to avoid the concentration of hot air. In addition, it must be placed 15 cm away from the wall, which will promote air circulation. The sun’s rays should not hit the refrigerator directly, since ultraviolet rays could inactivate the vaccines. It is also recommended to place it on a wooden base to avoid electricity leakage.

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