Environmental Services

As bed turn rates decline, the summer months give environmental service departments time to recharge and prepare for the next flu season.

Dror Rosengarten, MD, of the Institute of Pulmonology at Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center in Jerusalem, and colleagues, reported on a cluster of pseudo-infections in patients in a bronchoscopy unit who had Burkholderia cepacia isolated from bronchoalveolar lavage fluid samples

Methodist Healthcare in San Antonio, Texas and the University of Virginia (UVA) Medical Center are linking patient infection status to automated patient flow and bed management software from TeleTracking Technologies, clearly and instantaneously communicating isolation information to all hospital staff.

"Touchpoints" is a new campaign from Professional Disposables International, Inc. (PDI) that highlights the many ways germs can be transmitted in healthcare settings and is designed to educate caregivers and patients about preventing the spread of infections.

A recent University of Illinois (U of I) study links the application of disinfectants in recreational pools to previously published adverse health outcomes such as asthma and bladder cancer.

Advanced Sterilization Products (ASP) announces newly published data showing that the ASP EVOTECH® Endoscope Cleaner and Reprocessor (ECR) provides an automated approach superior to the manual cleaning required when using traditional AERs.

Research on the population of black-legged ticks, which can transmit Lyme disease from host animals to humans, reinforces that it is important to take preventive measures when spending time outdoors.

In the wake of the discovery that as many as 1,800 veterans may have been exposed to HIV and the hepatitis B virus while receiving dental care at the John A. Cochran Medical Center in St. Louis, an independent panel is now investigating why there were breaches of infection prevention and control practices relating to the disinfection and sterilization of instruments.

A new study suggests that using household cleaning and pesticide products could contribute to an increased risk of women developing breast cancer, as many of these products contain endocrine-disrupting chemicals or mammary gland carcinogens.

Georgia-Pacific Professional introduces the newest extension of its durable wiper product line the Brawny Industrial Surface System.

Rubbermaid Commercial Products (RCP) announces its newest comprehensive cleaning solution in the away-from-home washroom category, the SaniCell System.

The course, "The Infection Control Professional as an Environmentalist" will be offered Oct. 25-29, 2010 by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's William and Ida Friday Center for Continuing Education.

Practice Greenhealth unveils path to greener, more cost-effective operating rooms.

Ecolab Inc. announces the launch of Virasept, Ecolabs first ready-to-use (no mixing required) hard-surface disinfectant approved by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to be effective against Clostridium difficile spores.

Laundering temperatures, fabric denier and handling procedures all impact infection control efforts.