Abstract:

The Institutes of Health Research are the result of the Association of the teaching hospitals and researchers of the National Health system, Universities and other public and private research centres. Its aim is to conduct a transnational research of the highest quality, so that all the knowledge generated from Biomedical Research is finally translated into the treatment and prevention of diseases, and ultimately in the improvement of the population´s health and quality of life.

The aforementioned institutes are made up of different platforms, which include the Animal Housing and the Animal Research Area, and within this platform is the Experimental Surgery Unit that, in general, aims to develop projects of biomedical research, and from the teaching perspective, organize and give support to the realization of training courses of Surgical technical, in minimally invasive surgery and anesthetic techniques among others.

To carry out these surgical practices, it is necessary, on one hand, to have animal models that resemble the human being. Nowadays the most used models are the pig and the miniature pig, for which it is necessary to have an animal house facility where they can hold those species which they are going to experiment; and, on the other hand, it is necessary to have an surgical procedure area in which professionals can perform the surgical procedure practices in conditions as similar as possible to those that are to find a posteriori in a hospital environment.

The objective of this paper is to analyse the organizational model and functional design, the conceptual design and the constructive features of different experimental surgery units. It focuses specifically in the surgical areas, in the areas of housing of large animal and its annexed areas. We will make a comparative analysis that will give us guidelines for future actions, as lines of action in the conceptual design.

It should be noted that without properly designed, constructed and equipped infrastructures, in which research activities and scientific-technical training can be developed, it is difficult to position an institute as an international reference. That is why it is considered interesting the work presented in this presentation, since its final conclusions will be based on the sharing of the results obtained from the analysis of several centres that can be establish patterns of behaviour or protocols that may be useful in the design and construction of future centres. In addition it can serve as a guide or reference; firstly, to the professionals responsible for the centres, since they are, in many cases, the ones in charge of preparing the functional plan of departure; secondly, to architecture and engineering professionals, as responsible for the preparation and execution of construction projects for the centres; and finally, to the researchers of the hospital environment, because they are the final users of the facilities executed.

Keywords:

Animal farm, stabling, animal experimentation, experimental operating rooms, experimental surgery, research biomedical, surgical practices, organization.