Friday, 16 April 2004
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POST 00663E : FROM HFC/CFC TO HC-BASED REFRIGERATION Follow-up on Posts 00487E, 00493E, 00500E, 00513E, 00634E, 00638E, 00644E, 00648E and 00654E 16 April 2004 ____________________________ Abdoulaye Oumar Djigo ( c/o mailto:[email protected]) from Sénégal, gives his opinion on the topic, insisting on the need for training. ____________________________ The contributions we receive from TechNet21 are of great interest to us subscribers. Concerning the changeover from HFC/CFC to HC, I would like to raise the following: One can not deny that HC are better refrigerant fluids for the environment. In fact they are harmless to the ozone layer, which I believe the whole world should endeavour to protect. In addition HC have a lesser greenhouse effect compared to some HFC currently in use in refrigerators in the EPI system. As regards safety of usage, we also concur that used quantities are so negligible, they shouldn't be cause for explosion-fire related incidents. However, whatever the type of system is in use, it is necessary for the users to be trained to operate properly refrigerators and freezers. It is only after adequate training, that Head-Nurses can grasp the basic principles for optimum levels of operation and safety of the equipment. In 3 regions in Senegal, we have been privileged to undertake the training of 150 nurses, 4 medical doctors, and 4 supervisors on the operations and maintenance of refrigerators and freezers from the EPI cold chain in 2003 and 2004.This short experience has shown us that many of the management problems of vaccines (freeze of vaccines, high energy consumption, low reliability of equipment, high risk of fire when gas is used as a source of energy, leakage of fluids, etc.), stem from lack of familiarity with operations techniques and maintenance of the refrigeration equipment. Undeniably, manufacturers' brochures contain valuable information, and some people make reel efforts to read them. However brochures alone can not impart the required good habits necessary for running key equipment, which is vital for a successful EPI and expensive for national economies. We strongly believe that regardless of the type of refrigerant in use, the users must be trained for good preservation practices and rational usage for the best interest of communities they serve. Abdoulaye Oumar Djigo Refrigeration and Air-condition Engineer Biomedical Expert Consultant ______________________________________________________________________________ Visit the TECHNET21 Website at http://www.technet21.org You will find instructions to subscribe, a direct access to archives, links to reference documents and other features. ______________________________________________________________________________ To UNSUBSCRIBE, send a message to : mailto:[email protected] Leave the subject area BLANK In the message body, write unsubscribe TECHNET21E ______________________________________________________________________________ The World Health Organization and UNICEF support TechNet21. The TechNet21 e-Forum is a communication/information tool for generation of ideas on how to improve immunization services. It is moderated by Claude Letarte and is hosted in cooperation with the Centre de coopération internationale en santé et développement, Québec, Canada (http://www.ccisd.org) ______________________________________________________________________________
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