UMF Corporation, a leader in the research and development of high-performance textiles and processes for infection prevention, introduces the C-PULL for healthcare privacy curtains, the first product in the company’s Micrillon® line. Phoenix Textile Corporation – one of the nation’s leading providers of linens, apparel, and interior design products and services to the healthcare industry – has added C-PULL to its portfolio of healthcare solutions. The C-PULL with Micrillon provides built-in, rechargeable antimicrobial product protection against bacteria, fungi and viruses, with the entire surface able to bond with chlorine molecules. It is ideal for use in hospitals, long-term care facilities and nursing hom

Says Phoenix Textile Corporation President Linda Haberstroh, “Our team of CLLM-certified sales professionals is very excited about the addition of C-PULL to our portfolio of design solutions for Healthcare. It turns the privacy curtain, a soft surface, into a cleanable hard surface without impacting the design esthetic of the room.

Hospital privacy curtains are frequently and rapidly contaminated with pathogenic bacteria. Newresearch from the University of Michigan Medical Center shows that contamination of privacy curtains with multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) is a common problem and could be a source of disease transmission to patients. In a six-month study, 22% of cultures taken from privacy curtains tested positive for MDROs. This is just the latest in a growing body of research showing that privacy curtains provide fertile ground for MDROs. For example, a study published in theAmerican Journal of Infection Control (AJIC) indicates that 42% of privacy curtains were contaminated with vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE), 22% with methicillin-resistant S aureus (MRSA) and 4% with clostridium difficile (C. diff). Another recent AJIC study concludes that patient privacy curtains became progressively contaminated with bacteria, including MRSA, in 10-14 days after hanging

“In a continuing effort to provide simple, cost-effective solutions for reducing preventable healthcare associated infections (pHAIs), we developed the C-PULL with Micrillon to mitigate the risk of cross-contamination from privacy curtains, and we are thrilled that Phoenix Textile Corporation is one of our first distributors,” said UMF Corporation CEO George Clarke. “The C-PULL clamps onto any type of curtain and provides a hand target for patients, caregivers and visitors. It can be wiped down and disinfected easily with any EPA-registered disinfectant. Using a chlorine-active disinfectant delivers the added benefit of recharging the surface, thereby providing built-in anti-microbial product protection. 

An effective tool in the war against pHAIs, the C-PULL delivers the following benefits:

·      Includes unique, built-in, non-leeching product protection from Micrillon, the first rechargeable broad-spectrum anti-microbial polymer additive that provides bacterial, fungal and virus protection

·      Provides a hard surface touch-point target for caregivers, patients and visitors

·      Adapts easily to daily patient room processing, delivering environmental services and infection prevention process improvement

·      Designed for all reusable and disposable curtains – one size fits all

·      Eliminates hand-to-curtain contamination

·      Extends time between Remove & Replace cycles

·      Significant annual per-curtain cost saving

·      Durable, sustainable and shatter-proof

·      When two C-PULLs meet, they form the international symbol for "STOP"

·      Promotes patient dialogue and goodwill

The C-PULL achieves maximum recharge when cleaned and disinfected using a hypochlorous (HOCL)-based disinfectant such as Brutabs. It is available now at perfectclean.com.

“After years in development, we’re thrilled to introduce our first Micrillon product to the market,” added Clarke. “Micrillon also can be added to polymer film, acrylic latex paint and manmade synthetic fibers, which will be available from UMF Corporation soon. Such products will have a significant impact on the spread of antibiotic resistant organisms from hands to surfaces within the healthcare environment.”