Opening window for ventilation in hospital

[peachesarenom]

I'm currently in a hospital waiting room. I've deliberately sat by the window and opened it for ventilation. A person in uniform leaned over me to shut the window, just told me they were shutting it and quickly walked away by the time I looked up so I couldn't ask why.

I spoke to another uniformed person and they said I'd be ok because I'm wearing a mask.

I then spoke to the nurse treating me and she said I was fine to open it again!

AIBU to insist on ventilation?

Couldn't agree more!
I've been in this exact situation and had to stand my ground in insisting the window remained open.
We've got no hope if medical staff don't understand that ventilation is fundamental to avoiding covid.

It's difficult to work if you're freezing your arse off though.
It's her workplace, you'll only be there a short time

Yanbu

I always liked to sit by an open window in the drs waiting room even before Covid!

A person in uniform leaned over me to shut the window, just told me they were shutting it and quickly walked away by the time I looked up so I couldn't ask why.

Because other people were freezing their tits off maybe?

Surely she’s bustling about so will be keeping warm?

If the little kids have to sit in freezing classrooms I’m sure adults can work in active jobs with windows open

Work in a dental practice and all windows are open. Yes we are freezing but it’s the SOP so has to be done. Thermals under scrubs are the way forward not closed windows.

Depends on the window and the other patients in the area. It’s not unheard of for patients to jump out of windows in hospital. Perhaps the nurse was aware of something you were not that meant that that particular window shouldn’t be open.

Even pre Covid my local hospital was hot and stuffy. I always thought it was a perfect environment for germ breeding

Just keep opening it OP.

We've got all our windows open. My ward is boiling!

Open it. I have had to deal with a similar situation (asking people to put their masks on in a windowless, airless Covid soup of a hospital waiting room)

Every post covid hospital appointment I have been too chairs are very spread out in the waiting room. I wouldn’t be too impressed at windows being open and the place being cold as a result - especially if I had DS with me which I normally do when ar hospitals!

From what I understand windows don't necessarily have to be open all the time to provide ventilation, 5 to 10 minutes once an hour apparently provides a decent amount of ventilation.

Were you the only person in the waiting room? If not, maybe another person sat waiting asked the nurse to close it?

Opening windows is advice/guidance. The ventilation issue is juxtaposed with employees/staff having the right to a reasonable temperature in their workplace. So i'd say you were BU to 'insist'.

Just because you want ventilation doesn’t mean others do

It's not fair to unilaterally decide that the window will be open. I was at the hospital a while back and someone kept opening the bloody window, I ended up speaking to one of the clerks and they shut it.

Surely since covid is an airborne disease, it makes sense to have windows open?

NHS staff wear scrubs and are not allowed to wear anything below the elbows even if they can wear something under them. It does not make for warm clothing. Some people in the hospital will be very vulnerable and should not be expected to be cold. I think YABU to make a unilateral decision which impacts on others.

It's not really your place to be opening windows in a hospital waiting room. Did you rearrange the furniture and put a few pictures up too, just to make sure it was exactly how you liked it?

I had the misfortune to be in hospital for 6 long weeks in the summer. Not only did they not have any windows open, but they also had the bloody heating on, day and night. I kid you not, it was terrible. I got my husband to bring me a fan - no visitors, he had to drive 90 minutes to where I was, hand stuff at the ward reception, then go, without being able to even wave.

Op, fully agree with you on this. No one is going to freeze with the window open a bit, especially considering they are usually heated to sauna levels. No wonder so many are picking up covid and other bugs in hospital with no ventilation.

@WorraLiberty

A person in uniform leaned over me to shut the window, just told me they were shutting it and quickly walked away by the time I looked up so I couldn't ask why.

Because other people were freezing their tits off maybe?

Yes, this. I understand because of Covid but you can't make the decision for the whole waiting room because you want ventilation. I would think that if the hospital thought it necessary they would be open already.

The hospital I work in insists that all windows are opened for a minimum of ten minutes per hour. If you wanted the window open it should have remained open!