Killing germs without leaving the room

As an old EVS hand, I am always fascinated by the improvements in cleaning methods, including the introduction of new equipment. I still remember the days of cotton mops and buffing machines and pouring packets of chemicals into spray bottles and adding water—I am like cleaning Cro-magnon. Every once in a while, I see something that I can really see changing the landscape. To a fair degree, there is no more thankless job in healthcare than the folks charged with keeping the place clean—it’s never a problem until it’s a problem—and oh boy, what a problem! A lot of times, the most challenging part of cleaning is being able to gain access to the places that need the most cleaning or being granted enough time to clean properly.

So, I was thrilled to see an article in Infection Control Today touting the development of UV disinfection with the capability of doing its job in occupied areas. I’m sure many of you have seen the UV robots that require (more or less) sealing off the room so the UV pulse can do its thing. But now, this latest advancement in the technology can clean without potentially endangering folks. I know any technology in its (relative) infancy can take a while to work out the bugs, but a Columbia University study looks very promising.

As far as I’m concerned, we can never be too clean in healthcare, so if this is a step in a “cleaner” direction, sign me up!

About the Author: Steve MacArthur is a safety consultant with The Chartis Group. He brings more than 30 years of healthcare management and consulting experience to his work with hospitals, physician offices, and ambulatory care facilities across the country. He is the author of HCPro's Hospital Safety Director's Handbook and is an advisory board member for Accreditation and Quality Compliance Center. Contact Steve at stevemacsafetyspace@gmail.com.