Poppy Health Releases Results of Pilot Study Regarding Indoor Air Safety Monitoring

• By Matt Jones
• 09/26/22

Air monitoring systems provider Poppy Health recently released the results of a pilot study that it conducted alongside Primary.Health to test indoor air at California K–12 schools, according to a news release. In the study, Primary.Health—which provides software and services for large-scale vaccinations and testing—deployed the Poppy Air Monitoring Systems at four schools in the Bay Area between May 9 and June 17.

The purpose of the study was to collect indoor health data and determine if current COVID-19 testing methods were efficient in curbing the spread of the virus in schools. The results showed that if schools can measure ventilation performance, monitor indoor air safety, and make quick adjustments based on actionable insights, classrooms can be safer for both students and educators.

The Poppy technology used in the pilot provides quantitative air clearance data and diagnostic scanning to measure the path of airflow and how virus particles move throughout the room, revealing hotspots and transmission pathways. It also measured ventilation performance against the state guidelines of California, evaluated the success of current ventilation mitigation strategies, and helped provide a plan for improving and addressing issues.

“At Synergy School, the health and safety of our students and staff are of utmost importance. So when Primary.Health integrated Poppy into our safety program, it made perfect sense. Poppy’s air monitoring system is an easy and unobtrusive way to visualize airflow and keep classrooms safe,” said Susanne DeRisi, COVID testing program coordinator and librarian at Synergy School in San Francisco. “Changes as simple as repositioning air filters can make a big difference.”

The news release reports that indoor air monitoring has become the primary method of keeping track of the COVID-19 spread in schools, as educational facilities move from in-school to at-home antigen testing. The data provided from Poppy systems lets districts prioritize which schools—and even individual classrooms—need ventilation improvements.

“With the SARS-CoV-2 virus continuing to mutate and new COVID-19 waves emerging, these pilots reinforce how school administrators and districts can affordably improve the safety of the air in schools and mitigate the spread of pathogens,” said Poppy co-founder and co-CEO Sam Molyneux. “Poppy can play a significant role by continuously measuring the effectiveness of ventilation systems and revealing the presence of COVID-19 in classrooms. The time has come to look at the big picture and monitor how airborne viruses travel inside school buildings to prevent infectious outbreaks from taking hold.”