The HumanIC is an innovative initiative tackling hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) by improving indoor environment quality (IQA and thermal environment). The network aims to build a new approach to hospital environmental design through the concept of a human-centric indoor climate.
This project is a part of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions program, which is the European Union's flagship funding program for doctoral and postdoctoral training for researchers under Horizon Europe.
Why We Need This Project
Hospital-acquired infections are a serious global health challenge. In the EU alone, over 4 million patients contract an HAI annually, a problem compounded by the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance. A key factor in the spread of these infections is airflow, which can carry airborne pathogens and contaminate surfaces within a person's immediate surroundings, what we call the human-centric climate. This highlights the urgent need for new solutions that control infections without compromising patient well-being or increasing energy consumption.
Our Core Objectives
The HumanIC project aims to achieve its goals by concentrating on three key areas:
- Understanding pathogen exposure mechanisms. HumanIC builds new scientific knowledge on how pathogens spread in human-centric indoor environments. This includes models of microbial sources, emission and resuspension processes, and airflow dynamics in healthcare spaces, with the goal of reducing infection risk by 30%.
- Enhancing indoor climate in healthcare. The project focuses on improving both the performance of ventilation systems and the experience of patients and staff. It integrates IoT-based platforms, studies links between psychological and physiological responses, and builds models to predict individual thermal sensation. It also develops real-time monitoring tools for airborne microorganisms in hospitals.
- Creating smart tools for indoor climate management. HumanIC delivers novel design, forecasting, and visualization tools. These include advanced airflow simulations, augmented reality visualization of contaminants, data-driven algorithms, and web-based platforms for monitoring airborne risks in clinical environments.
Our Team
This ambitious project is a collaborative effort led by a consortium of 8 academic partners, 2 hospitals and 8 associated partners, bringing together a diverse range of expertise from academia, healthcare, and industry. Our partners include: Warsaw University of Technology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Technical University of Berlin, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Aalto University, St. Olav's University Hospital, The University of Coimbra, University Carlos III of Madrid, Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, University of Leeds, Halton Group, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, ActivTek MEDICA sp. z o. o., REHVA, Drees & Sommer, Avidicare AB, Industria Project sp. z o. o., and Granlund Oy.
Explore, Learn, Connect
Discover the full scope of HumanIC on our official website. Explore project materials and resources through the Open Resource Training Platform (ORTP), and follow our daily updates and highlights on Facebook, LinkedIn, and BlueSky. Stay connected and join the conversation.
Acknowledgement
The project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation program under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie (HORIZON-MSCA-2022-DN-01, project no 101119726).
