Reducing cross-contamination risk in healthcare facilities

Environmental cleaning specialists offer tips to help control infections


Healthcare facilities have to be especially vigilant in controlling germs, as cross-contamination can put staff and patients at increased risk, according to an article on the Service Master Clean website.
 
Environmental cleaning specialists offered the following three tips to help control healthcare associated infections:
 
• Always use the right cleaning and sanitation supplies. First, the environmental services staff needs to know the difference between cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting, then they need the right tools for each job. A combination of clean water, a commercial detergent and a microfiber cloth is ideal for basic surface cleaning. 
 
Once a surface or an item has been cleaned, it can then be disinfected. Healthcare facilities must use hospital-grade disinfectants 
 
Keeping alcohol based hand sanitizer available throughout a healthcare facility is crucial.
 
• Regular cleaning, sanitizing and disinfecting help control viruses. High-touch surfaces require more frequent and thorough cleaning.
 
•  Finally, proper hand hygiene is the simplest, but perhaps the most important, component of preventing cross-contamination in healthcare facilities. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), hand hygiene in healthcare facilities should be performed in the following situations:
• Before eating.
• Before and after contact with a patient's skin.
• Before moving to a clean body site after contact with a contaminated body site.
• After using the washroom.
• After removing gloves.
• After contact with any inanimate object near a patient.
• After contact with bodily fluids or broken skin.
 
Read the article.
 
 


February 20, 2018


Topic Area: Infection Control


Recent Posts

Alleged Ransomware Administrator Extradited from South Korea

The Phobos ransomware has been used globally to target over 1,000 organizations, including healthcare.


Design Plans Unveiled for New Intermountain St. Vincent Regional Hospital

The new hospital will be a 14-floor, 737,000 square-foot facility in Billings, Montana.


Ground Broken on New Pediatric Health Campus in Dallas

The new campus will replace the existing Children’s Medical Center Dallas.


Pre-Construction Strategies for Successful Facilities Projects

Savvy decisions can help facilities meet long-term goals by creating consistency and eliminating waste.


Geisinger Finds Success with Violence Prevention Efforts

Their safety measures included training staff in de-escalation, active-shooter response drills and equipping 6,000 employees with duress notification badges.


 
 


FREE Newsletter Signup Form

News & Updates | Webcast Alerts
Building Technologies | & More!

 
 
 


All fields are required. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

 
 
 
 

Healthcare Facilities Today membership includes free email newsletters from our facility-industry brands.

Facebook   Twitter   LinkedIn   Posts

Copyright © 2023 TradePress. All rights reserved.