How To Reduce Healthcare-Associated Infections
Hospitals are meant to be places we go to get better. Sadly healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) affect 1 in 25 patients in Canadian Hospitals.[1]
There are specific cleaning and disinfection protocols to prevent contamination and the spread of disease, but when it comes to mobile medical devices, these are often overlooked and thus can be a large contributor to HAIs. Equipment such as wheelchairs, IV poles and mobile computers/workstations are touched thousands of times every day by patients, visitors and staff. Pathogens can spread from the individual to the equipment, and vice versa, and bacteria spread from one area of the hospital to another. A recent study that was published in the American Journal of Infection Control titled ‘Wheelchair cleaning and disinfection in Canadian health care facilities’, surveyed hospitals and long-term care facilities and concluded that wheelchair cleaning and disinfection is not optimally performed. Respondents were very concerned about wheelchair cleaning as an infection control issue.
At Bunzl Canada we understand both patient and care givers concerns with regard to this issue. That is why we have created this guide to help reduce healthcare-associated infections with the aid of electrostatic disinfecting.
To get your downloadable guide please click here.
[1] Gardner et al, “Wheelchair cleaning and disinfection in Canadian health care facilities: “That’s wheelie gross!”, American Journal of Infection Control, (November 2014), 1173-1174.