 Dear infection prevention community, For any business, preparation can mean the difference between success and failure. However, when it comes to infection prevention, the stakes are much higher than maximizing revenue. |
Every year, outbreaks occur that devastate communities and capture headlines throughout the world. It is critical that businesses have a plan in place to combat not only emerging pathogens, but recurring viruses such as the common cold and flu. According to the CDC, up to 20 percent of the U.S. population contracts the flu each year and more than 200,000 people are hospitalized. As we enter peak flu season, ask yourself if you’ve done everything you can to protect your customers, staff, students, guests, patients and other building visitors. At Diversey Care, we understand the threat that the cold and flu presents your business. Proper disinfection is critical in minimizing risk and maintaining a clean and safe facility — and we have more than a century of experience in helping organizations create healthy environments. Today, we have a full team of infection prevention experts at your disposal to help you create safer environments, enhance productivity and lower overall facility costs. |
In addition to offering numerous Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Health Canada-registered disinfection products, we provide resources in our Outbreak Prevention Resource Center that help organizations manage outbreaks, and education and training regarding cleaning and disinfection best practices. Protecting your customers, staff, students, guests, patients and other building visitors from infection is not only a good business decision, it is your responsibility. We have the solutions and expertise to help you in your fight against infection — and we take our responsibility as the infection prevention leader very seriously. Best regards, Richard McEvoy President of North America, Diversey Care |
| PREVENTING THE SPREAD OF INFECTIONS With cold and flu season upon us, it's critical that organizations work diligently to reduce the spread of viruses. Doing so will keep staff, occupants and visitors safe. While the cold and flu are caused by different viruses, both call for similar cleaning and disinfection processes. Facilities should consider the following tips to prevent outbreaks and reduce the spread of those that do occur. |
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| 1 Practice proper hand hygiene Frequent hand hygiene helps prevent the spread of the pathogens that can cause the cold, flu or other illnesses. However, new research finds that handwashing among hospital employees drops as their shifts progress, from 42.6 percent in the first hour of work to 34.8 percent in the last hour of a 12-hour shift. Individuals should wash hands with soap and water if they are soiled. If soap and water is not available, use an alcohol hand sanitizer but remember that alcohol doesn’t remove soil. |
3 Encourage vaccinations According to the CDC, 63 percent of healthcare workers in the U.S. were immunized against the flu in the past two years. Providing or requiring employee vaccinations helps both healthcare and non-healthcare workers protect themselves against influenza viruses that are the same or related to the viruses in the vaccine. |
6 Stay well-stocked Stock additional supplies of personal protective equipment (PPE), disinfectants, hand hygiene products, facial tissue, toilet tissue, trash bags and cleaning cloths and tools. |
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4 Develop materials and procedures Prepare signs and other communication materials that encourage employees and guests to practice good hand hygiene, such as using hand sanitizers and washing hands properly. Ensure cleaning procedures are in place that detail what surfaces and equipment are to be cleaned and the order in which cleaning should occur. Describe when to perform hand hygiene, when glove use is required, the cleaners, disinfectants and tools to use and the frequency of cleaning/disinfection. |
7 Monitor compliance Facilities should consider the use of compliance monitoring to ensure workers are performing cleaning as expected. This may include keeping track of handwashing and sanitizing habits through automated hand hygiene monitoring and compliance reporting, using fluorescent markers to measure surface cleanliness rates and tracking PPE usage. |
| 2 Clean and disinfect surfaces Commonly-touched surfaces (door handles, light switches, elevator buttons, phones, etc.) should be disinfected regularly or when visibly soiled using an EPA or Health Canada-registered disinfectant that are effective against representative cold and flu viruses. Employees should clean from high to low, from cleanest to dirtiest and from dry to wet and ensure that the disinfectant is left on the surface for the appropriate dwell time. |
5 Increase cleaning frequency Proper cleaning should also be conducted more frequently during cold and flu season and during any outbreak. This may mean changing the traditional cleaning schedule to a more frequent cleaning schedule of all common areas. |
WITH THE ABOVE STRATEGIES, ORGANIZATIONS CAN HELP PREVENT THE COLD AND FLU FROM SPREADING, KEEPING EMPLOYEES AND GUESTS HEALTHY. |
| DIVERSEY CARE NEWS DIVERSEY CARE BLOG Smooth sailing with infection prevention under control FACILITYCARE The facility manager’s role in preparing for the Ebola outbreak FACILITYCARE A clean check up: Hospital housekeeping best practices |
BY THE NUMBERS Adults have an average of 2-3 colds per year and children have even more. There are approximately 200 viruses that can cause the common cold. People infected with the flu may be able to infect others beginning 1-4 days before symptoms develop. A single sneeze can release 40,000 droplets, which can travel through the air and be inhaled or swallowed by others. |
| Don’t give viruses a place to thrive. For infection prevention information visit diversey.com/outbreakprevention For more infection prevention insight, register for FacilityCare’s webinar on January 22, featuring Diversey Care’s global healthcare sector expert Peter Teska. Click here to register. |
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