What happens when one disinfectant cannot satisfy every IFU? At AHE in New Orleans, Diane Cullen discusses weighted risk assessment, documenting difficult decisions, and why infection prevention and EVS need to work together.
|Articles|May 14, 2012
Crothall Healthcare Releases White Paper on Environmental Hygiene
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Environmental services provider Crothall Healthcare announces the release of its Infection Prevention White Paper, a comprehensive document summarizing the importance of environmental hygiene to a hospital's infection prevention and control (IPC) program and Crothall's integrated environmental services approach to patient safety through reduced transmission of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs).
The white paper examines Crothall's entire solution within the context of latest, evidence-based infection prevention and environmental hygiene research and is well documented and thoroughly explained by Crothall's multi-disciplinary research team, led by board-certified infection preventionist Steven J. Schweon, RN, MPH, MSN, CIC, HEM.
The document first lays out the case for the environment's role in the transmission of pathogens, explaining why environmental cleaning and disinfection is critical to the transmission of microorganisms that cause infectious diseases. It then details Crothall's integrated approach to IPC, including the training, education, supervision, and ongoing competency testing of housekeeping staff, the performance of rigorous and routine cleaning, with heightened focus on high-touch surfaces, the use of ATP bioluminescence monitoring to ensure cleaning quality and long-term trending, and the supplementation of this program with technology, including UV sterilization. Finally, the white paper includes a hospital case study providing evidence that Crothall's approach is highly successful.
According to Crothall Healthcare president Tom Racobaldo, "For many years, we have invested extensive resources into the fight against HAIs. As a result, I am proud to say that we have a proven, integrated approach unrivaled in our industry. As the nation's largest environmental services provider, we have an important responsibility to the healthcare organizations and patients we serve."
The white paper is available for download from Crothall's website at
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