Cleaning, Sanitizing And Disinfecting

As healthcare facilities see the other side of the pandemic, facility managers  are being urged to look at  current practices, products and tools, according to an article on the Hospital Health website.

Ensure the appropriate level of surface hygiene — cleaning, sanitizing and disinfecting — should be identified for each surface.

Though these words are often used interchangeably, there are important differences.

• Cleaning removes soil from a surface
• Sanitizing kills surface bacteria
• Disinfecting has the power to kill bacteria and fungi and inactivates viruses, at a much higher level

When investigating disinfectant options, healthcare facility managers should pick a product that is fast, effective, and less likely to cause irritation and surface damage.

"In a hospital environment, commonly touched surfaces should be cleaned and disinfected at least once a day," said cleaning business consultant Bill Fellows, in a CleanLink article. “With COVID-19, some hospital custodians are cleaning surfaces every hour."

While around-the-clock cleaning may not be feasible for all facilities, EVS staff should focus their efforts on one of the most challenging areas to disinfect: the vicinity in and around the hospital bed, also known as the patient hot zone.

Read the full Hospital Health article.