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Environmental Cleaning: Emerging Technologies
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Environmental Cleaning: Role of Environmental Surfaces
Environmental Cleaning: Effective Cleaning Strategies
Environmental Cleaning: Monitoring Cleaning
Environmental Cleaning: Emerging Technologies
Environmental Cleaning: Barriers to Effective Cleaning and Disinfection
Environmental Cleaning Homepage
Emerging Technologies
Technology FAQs
What are the benefits of new whole-room disinfection technologies?
What are the benefits of new whole-room disinfection technologies?
The adequacy of manual cleaning and disinfection is often suboptimal; e.g., wet contact time is not always achieved
"Touchless" or non-manual techniques can provide a higher level of disinfection
These technologies have been shown to be clinically effective in stopping outbreaks
Non-Manual Techniques for Room Disinfection in Healthcare Facilities: A Review
of Clinical Effectiveness and Guidelines
(PDF)
(Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health)
What is environmental fogging?
What is environmental fogging?
Hydrogen peroxide in either a dry mist or vapor form.
Pros
Reliable microbiology activity against many pathogens
Mist or vapor is uniformly distributed; no furniture needs to be moved
No toxic residues
Evidence is still being gathered; CDC has no recommendations for use
Cons
Patients and staff must leave room because the vapor can cause airway or mucous membrane irritation
Room must be sealed and monitored for leaks
Rooms cannot be rapidly turned over
High-level training required
Cost is substantial
Environmental Cleaning for the Prevention of
HealthcareAssociated Infections, 2015
(AHRQ Technical Brief #22)
What is the efficacy of vapor or mist-based fogging technologies?
What is the efficacy of vapor or mist-based fogging technologies?
In direct comparison between hydrogen peroxide dry-mist versus bleach solution in rooms that had previously housed patients with CDI:
Manual cleaning with bleach reduced C. difficile spores 50%
The addition of hydrogen peroxide vapor after manual cleaning reduced spores by91% (p<.005).
Barbut et al. ICHE. 2009 (read article via
PubMed
)
What are some caveats to use of whole-room disinfection technologies?
What are some caveats to use of whole-room disinfection technologies?
Whole room disinfection cannot substitute for good physical cleaning practices, including compliance with hand hygiene and avoiding cross-contamination
Infection preventionists, industrial hygienists, and environmental services supervisors should assess the cleaning procedures, chemicals used, and the safety issues to determine if nearby patients need to be temporarily relocated when disinfecting a room
What is ultraviolet (UV) disinfection?
What is ultraviolet (UV) disinfection?
UV light halts the growth and reproduction of microorganisms by denaturing essential proteins (i.e. DNA)
Efficacy may be enhanced by using special paint on the walls
Pros
Disinfection is not solely dependent upon individual practice
Kills organisms on frequently missed areas
Safe, rapid, automated, non-corrosive
Requires fewer staff resources
Cons
Influenced by organic matter, does not penetrate porous surfaces
Shadowed areas may still require chemical disinfection; may need to move UV light device several times during disinfection process
Not as consistently effective as peroxide vapor in reducing levels of contamination
Room turnover is slower
Cannot be used in occupied rooms
Potential exposure of staff to UV if door sensor malfunctions
The expense is significant
Two types:
Emitting devices provide a continuous light from a bulb in a portable machine or hand-held wand
Pulsed xenon-UV (UV-C) works using the entire disinfecting spectrum of UV light
Anderson et al. Infection Control. 2006 (read article via
PubMed
)
Read about UV cleaning device at
Xenex.com
Miller et al. AJIC. 2015; Nagaraja et al. AJIC. 2015; Nerandzic et al. BMC Infections Diseases. 2010 (read article via
PubMed
)
HICPAC 2008 (read Guideline for Disinfection and Sterilization via
CDC
) (PDF)
Environmental Cleaning for the Prevention of HealthcareA
ssociated Infections, 2015
(AHRQ Technical Brief #22)
Summary of Key Points
Summary of Key Points
A properly cleaned care environment is essential to prevent or contain HAIs
A surface must be physically cleaned before it can be disinfected
Consistent use of best practices and clarity of roles should be emphasized
Use of technologies such as microfiber, monitoring systems, and whole-room disinfection after cleaning are increasingly becoming the community standard of care
EVS staff should be valued and supported so they can maximize their unique contributions to preventing HAI
Environmental Cleaning Resources
CDC/HICPAC Guidelines for Environmental Infection Control in Health-Care Facilities, 2003
(PDF)
CDC/HICPAC Guideline for Disinfection and Sterilization in Healthcare Facilities, 2008
(PDF)
CDC Options for Evaluating Environmental Cleaning Toolkit
(PDF)
CDC Environmental Checklist for Monitoring Terminal Cleaning
(PDF)
CDC Environmental Checklist
(scroll to bottom of page and download word doc)
CDC Environmental Cleaning Eval Worksheet
(scroll to bottom of page and download excel doc)
CDC/HICPAC Guidelines for Hand Hygiene in Healthcare Settings Published 2002
(PDF)
WHO Guidelines on Hand Hygiene in Healthcare (2009)
(PDF)
Page Last Updated :
April 30, 2024