Your employees feel it and your patients notice it; IAQ

But do you measure it too?

In many healthcare institutions, the technical department focuses primarily on monitoring the installations responsible for air treatment and purification. This involves continuously monitoring the operation of air handling units, filters, fans, pressure differences, temperature, and humidity, among other things, to ensure that the systems function according to established standards.

How one smart sensor makes air quality in your healthcare facility visible, measurable, and manageable for everyone on the work floor.

Imagine this: a nurse starts her third night shift in a row. Halfway through the shift, she feels a headache coming on. She is tired, less sharp than usual. She attributes it to the workload. But the real cause?The CO₂ level in the nursing station has been too high for hours. Of ventilation it spins, but not fast enough. No one sees it. No one measures it.At that very moment, an elderly patient is lying in the rehabilitation ward. She is recovering from hip surgery and is suffering from respiratory issues. What no one knows: the particulate matter concentration in her room has been too high all day. Her symptoms are being treated as part of the recovery process, while the cause literally hangs in the air.

Although these installations are carefully monitored, this does not automatically mean that the actual air quality in every individual room is continuously measured. Parameters such as CO₂, PM2.5, PM10, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are typically monitored in only a limited number of critical or representative rooms. As a result, there is not always insight into the actual air quality at the level of individual patient rooms, consulting rooms, waiting rooms, or offices.

By installing additional sensors in these spaces, the technical service department can monitor the actual air quality alongside the performance of the air handling units. This makes it possible to detect deviations more quickly, control ventilation more precisely, improve comfort for patients and staff, and simultaneously use energy more efficiently.

IAQ: The air that no one sees, but everyone breathes

In healthcare, everything revolves around people. Around the patient who needs to recover. Around the nurses and caregivers who need to stay alert. Around the doctor who has to make the right decision. But there is one factor that affects all these people and that almost no one considers: indoor air quality or IAQ.

And it is not just about “is it fresh enough”. The air in your healthcare facility contains substances that you cannot see, smell, or feel, but which are measurable. And which do have an effect on the people in your building.

What your employees notice

Nurses, doctors, cleaners, and facilities staff spend long shifts in the same spaces. If the air quality is not up to standard, they are the first to notice, although they often do not make the connection.

• Headache and fatigue, the highCO₂ concentrations can cause headaches and fatigue. This happens above 1,000 ppm, a level that is reached faster than you think in busy nursing stations and office spaces.

• Irritation of the eyes and respiratory tract, Totale Volatile Organic Compounds (TVOCs). These are released during disinfection, from cleaning agents, and even from furniture and paint.

• Dry mucous membranes, due to excessively low humidity, making employees more susceptible to infections, precisely in an environment where they are exposed to pathogens daily.

• Loss of concentration and errors, because the brain receives less oxygen with poor ventilation. In a care environment where alertness saves lives, that is a risk you do not want to take.
  

Research from Harvard's T.H. Chan School of Public Health shows that a well-ventilated environment has a demonstrably positive effect on cognitive performance. In an initial lab study, participants scored up to 61% better on cognitive tests in well-ventilated rooms. A large-scale follow-up study involving more than 300 office workers in six countries, over a period of 12 months, confirmed this link: higher CO2 concentrations (an indicator of poor ventilation) and more particulate matter were associated with slower reaction times and less accurate scores on cognitive tests.

Bron: Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Global CogFx Study: https://healthybuildings.hsph.harvard.edu/impacts-of-indoor-air-quality-on-cognitive-function/

In a sector struggling with staff shortages and high absenteeism, a healthy working environment is not a luxury  but a must. 

What your patients and residents experience

Patients are particularly vulnerable. They have a weakened immune system, healing wounds, or chronic conditions. The air they breathe has a direct impact on their recovery.

• Increased risk of infection: In poorly ventilated spaces, airborne pathogens spread more rapidly. Examples include influenza viruses, norovirus, or MRSA. Continuous CO₂ monitoring is the simplest way to detect ventilation problems.beforethey lead to outbreaks.

• Worsening of respiratory symptoms: Patients with COPD, asthma, or a lung infection are particularly sensitive to particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10). In a pulmonary ward or rehabilitation center, this can make the difference between a smooth recovery and complications.

• Sleep quality and well-being: Temperature, humidity, and air quality directly affect how well patients sleep and recover. An uncomfortable room prolongs the length of stay, with all the associated costs.

• Formaldehyde: In recently renovated or newly built wards, building materials and furniture release formaldehyde (HCHO). Patients in those areas are exposed to a substance that is harmful at high concentrations, while the problem often subsides on its own after a few weeks, provided you monitor it..

One sensor that measures everything and protects

The Indoor Air Quality sensor deployed by Alltrace has been developed for precisely these situations. It is a compact, wireless device that is mounted on the wall and measures up to nine air quality parameters simultaneously:

Temperature, humidity, CO₂, volatile organic compounds (TVOC), particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), light intensity, air pressure, movement (presence detection) and formaldehyde or ozone.

But the special thing is not only in what the sensor measures. It lies in how the information becomes available to the people on the shop floor.

In the department: immediately visible, no explanation needed

The sensor has a built-in E-ink display with a traffic light function.Greenmeans that the air is good. Yellow warns that values ​​are rising. Red indicates that action is required. Additionally, clear emoticons show the status at a glance.

That means: a nurse walking by sees direct whether the air quality in the department is okay. No app needed, no dashboard to open, no technical knowledge required. It works just like a traffic light; everyone understands it.

Het Alltrace dashboard

While the sensor in the department provides direct feedback, all data is also received on the Alltrace-dashboard. Here, as a logistics manager, facilities manager, or purchasing manager, you get the complete overview.

• Real-time air quality per room: See at a glance which departments are scoring green, yellow, or red. The dashboard displays the current status of every sensor in your building.

• Historical trends: Observe how air quality develops over days, weeks, and months. Recognize patterns: is the waiting room overloaded every Tuesday? Does the CO₂ in the ICU always rise after 4:00 PM?

• Automatic notifications: Set threshold values ​​per room. If exceeded, Alltrace automatically generates a notification or a specific task for the appropriate employee.

• Multi-location: Do you manage multiple locations? One dashboard displays all your settings. Compare performance,spot problemsand adjust from one central overview.

• Reports for audits: All measurement data is stored and cannot be manually deleted. Export reports for inspections, accreditations, or demonstrating compliance with the Working Conditions Act and WIP guidelines.

In short: In the department, everyone can immediately see what the air is like. On the dashboard, you see where action is needed and can prove that you are doing a good job.

From measurement to action: automated actions on the shop floor

Data is valuable. But data that yields nothing is a waste of time. That is why it translates Alltrace-platform sensordata Automatically to concrete actions. No manual checks, no Excel lists, no forgotten notifications.

This works via AllRules It control system with which you set once which action corresponds to which sensor value. After that, the platform does the rest.

What that looks like in practice

The situation	What the sensor detects	Alltrace arranges for you
Busy waiting room at the outpatient clinic	CO₂ rises above 1,200 ppm	Notification to Facilities + signal to HVAC to increase ventilation
Cleaning round on the nursing ward	TVOC peak after disinfection	Ventilation assignment+ registration in the logbook
Night on the nursing ward	PIR detects no movement	Sensor switches to economy mode, ventilation is reduced
Newly completed department after renovation	Formaldehyde above threshold	Alert to administrator + task: "air quality control department C2"
Heatwave, windows remain closed	Temperature and humidity too high	Cooling request+ report to the team on duty
Patient room with COPD patient	PM2.5 is rising	Warning + ventilation adjustment for that specific zone

The result: Your nurses do not need to read meters. Your facilities team responds proactively instead of reactively. And your patients are in a demonstrably healthy environment.

Why this works: technology that is suitable for care

IoT projects in healthcare have a reputation: complex, expensive, and difficult to integrate. Alltrace’s IAQ sensor is the opposite. This is because the sensor communicates via LoRaWAN®, a technology specifically developed for IoT in buildings.

What that specifically means for your institution

• No strain on your hospital Wi-Fi. LoRaWAN operates on a private network. Your medical equipment and patient systems are not affected in any way.

• No cables, no sockets.The sensor runs on batteries with a lifespan of several years. Hang it up and you're done. That saves your technical department work.

• Wide range. One gateway covers an entire building. Multiple floors, long corridors, thick walls. No dozens of access points needed.

• Secure data transfer. All data is transmitted encrypted. Privacy and security are built in by default. We do not sell data and do not advertise.

• Start small, grow together. Start with a pilot in one department. Does it work? Roll it out to your entire institution. The platform scales effortlessly.

  
  

Compliance: not just doing it right, but proving it

The Working Conditions Act, the Building Decree, and WIP guidelines set increasingly concrete requirements for air quality in healthcare institutions. And the trend is clear: the requirements are becoming stricter, not more lenient. It is no longer sufficient to say that the air quality is good, you must deliver the proof.

Good to know: the sensor has received the ‘Works with WELL’ certification from the International WELL Building Institute. This confirms that the sensor meets the highest international standards for healthy buildings.

Getting started: here's how easy it is

No major IT project. No months-long implementation. This is how it works, and it can be implemented within 6 weeks:

1. Mount sensor → Wall mounting in the department. Five minutes, done. No power, no cables.

2. We deliver the sensor plug and play. With our Alltrace app, you only need to indicate in which room the sensor will be mounted.

3. Data flows to Alltrace → All measured values ​​arrive on your dashboard in real-time via a central gateway. The gateway communicates via 4G (optionally via your network).

4. Setting rules → Determine which actions correspond to which values. Set it up once, then it runs automatically.

5. Expand whenever you want -> Satisfied with the initial launch? Roll out to more departments, locations, and other sensors such as fall detection, leak detection, and fill level registration. All from a single dashboard.

Fill level sensors measure how full the waste bins are.

Alltrace guides you every step of the way. From the correct sensor location to setting up your first AllRules. We think along, we implement, and support where necessary.