Sodexo Selects Xenex Room Disinfection System

Sodexo Inc., a leader in healthcare environmental services management, and Xenex Healthcare Services, a leader in room disinfection systems, announces that Xenex has been selected as Sodexo's preferred partner for disinfection of Sodexo client facilities. Xenexs portable room disinfection system uses pulsed xenon ultraviolet light to destroy all viruses, bacteria and bacterial spores in the patient environment without contact or chemicals. The partnership with Xenex further enhances Sodexo's patient-focused infection prevention service model with the goal of preventing healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) by eliminating the microorganisms which cause them.

Xenex offers a fast, safe and cost-effective method for the automated disinfection of healthcare facilities, such as patient rooms, ORs and ICUs. Uniquely designed for ease of use and portability, the Xenex device can be operated by a hospitals environmental services staff without disrupting hospital operations or requiring the use of expensive chemicals. The Xenex system is capable of disinfecting dozens of rooms per day, so hospitals can use the system continuously to reduce contamination levels throughout their facilities.

"Xenex's technology enables Sodexo to confidently provide a healthy healing environment to the patients, visitors and staff we serve more quickly and more effectively than any other technology on the market," says John LaRochelle, vice president of environmental services and laundry brand management at Sodexo.

"We anticipate UV-C light technology will be one of the primary methods used to reduce surface-related hospital acquired infections. We have learned a significant amount about whole room disinfection technologies over the past three years and determined that the Xenex technology provides the best overall impact on reducing HAIs while fitting into our patient-focused infection prevention service model," says Larry Garrone, director of research and development for the environmental services brand management at Sodexo.

Xenex systems are currently being used by hospitals throughout the U.S. and have been proven to be effective against a variety of the most dangerous superbugs, including Clostridium difficile endospores (C. diff), MRSA, VRE, and Acinetobacter. Studies show the Xenex room disinfection system is consistently 20 times more effective than standard chemical cleaning practices and in one recent study, the Xenex system was shown to reduce a hospitals C.diff infection rate by 82 percent.

"Sodexo is the leader among environmental services providers for delivering infection control best practices to its healthcare customers. After months of studying the various technologies available for automated room disinfection, theyve selected the Xenex system as the most practical and cost-effective solution. This is an exciting partnership for us and more importantly, its a big step forward in infection prevention and patient safety in the hospitals Sodexo serves," says Brian Cruver, CEO of Xenex.