Case Studies
UKHSA Mobile Testing Unit Closure
North of England
​
As part of the ramp down of testing, the UK government had a significant number of assets in the field, part of which was a fleet of 15 trailers which were used for outbreak testing. Upon being advised of a testing support need, these trailers were being dispatched across the North of England and carried out rapid Covid-19 tests using LAMP. chxair was able to assist the rapid decommissioning of these units in late March/early April 2022. This was conducted using a combination of peroxide fogging and in trailer air testing using AerosolSense™ to show they did not contain Covid-19.
​
chxair has developed a significant suite of decontamination and air/facility cleansing using a combination of mobile technologies, always of course, with rigorous testing using AerosolSense™ to ensure that the treatments are effective.
Hospital
UMASS Memorial DCU Hospital
​
Staff providing patient care in the Hospital worked in areas with a high presence of SARS-CoV-2. The hospital operated isolated Zones with Staff accessing Cold and Warm Zones isolated by airlock doors, with both Staff and Patients accessing a Hot Zone that incorporated a negative pressure system.
​
Hospital management needed a surveillance solution to confirm that infection control protocols were working and that no cross-zone contamination was occurring.
Solution
AerosolSense Sampler was placed in each of the Cold, Warm and Hot Zones and monitored on a continuous basis with samples analysed by the testing laboratory to identify the presence of SARS-CoV-2 using ThermoFisher multiplex diagnostic solutions.
​
Results
In-air SARS-CoV-2 presence was not detected in warm or cold zone areas, validating the efficacy of current facility safety protocols.
​
Conclusion
“The solution allowed us to monitor the safety of our facility and confirmed that existing containment systems and infection control processes were working. The in-air results mitigated operational impacts and gave the entire staff confidence in their safety protocols. We can use PPE, but knowing that the air around is clean is extremely helpful.“
DCU Field Hospital Medical Director
Care Home
Arbor Village Nursing Home
​
When it comes to SARS-CoV-2, few populations are as vulnerable as senior citizens, presenting an enormous challenge to care communities. Once the SARS-CoV-2 pathogen is identified in one of these environments, staff must act quickly and confidently.
​
The leadership of Arbor Village Nursing Home faced the challenge of safeguarding seventy-one high-risk residents. They relied on rapid individual testing to diagnose COVID-19 cases, during the peak of the pandemic, employees and residents were routinely individually tested twice a week.
In partnering with Thermo Fisher Scientific, the Arbor Village Nursing Home had two goals:
1) Monitor for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 by sampling air in the employee break room since these individuals were continuously in and out of the facility.
2) Correlate in-air sample results with rapid testing results to strengthen future decision making of testing frequency.
Solution
AerosolSense Sampler was placed in the 100 sq. ft. employee breakroom. Air samples were collected daily over a period of four weeks. After each sample cycle, samples were sent to the testing laboratory to identify the presence of SARS CoV- 2 using the Applied BiosystemsTM TaqPathTM COVID-19 Combo Kit, a highly sensitive multiplex diagnostic solution.
​
Results
Over the four-week period, sixteen out of twenty air sampling reports were negative and one was positive for SARS-CoV-2.
​
Response
Following the in-air positive result, individual rapid testing was performed the same day, with all employees testing negative. An employee who worked overnight and accessed the breakroom while the sampler was running reported the following day that a family member tested positive for COVID-19. Prior to the positive in-air result and individual rapid test, the employee had not shown symptoms, but did quarantine at home for fourteen days.
​
Three days after the AerosolSense Sampler identified SARS-CoV-2, the employee who was quarantining at home tested positive with a rapid antigen test as they had begun to show symptoms. AerosolSense detected SARS-CoV-2 in the air of the facility before the individual tested positive for COVID-19. This employee was the only positive case during the timeframe of the program and it was the only time the sampler identified the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in the facility air.
​
Conclusion
The Arbor Village Nursing Home achieved their goals of monitoring the break room air daily and correlating rapid testing data with in-air results. Combined with their existing routine testing and safety protocols, the AerosolSense Sampler identified the presence of SARS-CoV-2 early.
This allowed leadership to make quick and more informed decisions thereby, reducing the opportunity of an outbreak within the facility.
“The AerosolSense Sampler allowed for the identification of the virus in the air three days before an employee tested positive. This raised quick awareness to provide immediate testing to all employees and residents, which allowed us to prevent a potential outbreak. If the employee had not been put in isolation and we did not have the sampler, this could have resulted in an outbreak.”
Arbor Village Nursing Home Executive Director
Schools
Wisconsin and Illinois
​
Thermo Fisher Scientific's AerosolSense Sampler is apart of a pilot programme in Wisconsin and Illinois, combining air surveillance with PCR testing to detect whether SARS-CoV-2 is in the air.