1. 【How dusts on the floor can be transmitted to environmental surface?】
Floor cleaning is the main task for cleaning staff. Cleaning staff remove dusts from the floor and then carry out mopping work with disinfectant solution. Or dust removal from the floor and mopping work with antiseptic solution can simultaneously be carried out by using one dedicated/special cleaning sheet. It is considered that hospital floor (even a part of the floor) can be unsanitary. Therefore, the entire floor would be even more unsanitary. If correctly/precisely explaining such situation, a floor is unsanitary because of “Dusts” on the floor surface. While dusts are defined as unsanitary, they can be floating in the air and moving by contact. The cleaning sheet of dust removal for floor surface may create large movable unsanitary accumulations in the entire room during the floor cleaning process. These unsanitary accumulations can be transmitted to environmental surface and eventually cause healthcare-associated infection.
Transmission method for environmental surface (1)
Hands (or hands with gloves) of cleaning staff are not always dry all the time. Cleaning staff would experience a number of wet-hand situations such as cleaning a wet area (water-related place) or spraying disinfectant solution on cloth occasionally. In particular, wet hands could easily attract microscopic objects by water tension. The microscopic objects in such a case may include accumulated dusts on the floor surface during the floor cleaning. Then, with wet hands, microscopic objects can be transmitted to environmental surface. Bacteria contained in microscopic objects can easily survive and multiply on environmental surface due to moisture/water obtained from wet hands.
Transmission method for environmental surface (2)
A cleaning cart that always moves with cleaning staff may easily get accumulated dirt. Particularly, dusts on the floor surface could be the main cause for such dirt. Normally, after the daily cleaning work, cleaning carts are stored in hospital under stable room temperature. In some cases, cleaning carts might be stored in a small/narrow warehouse with poor ventilation. In addition to such poor environment, cleaning carts as frequently taking in/out cleaning solutions may cause surviving/multiplying bacteria. By using such cleaning carts at the time of cleaning work, microscopic objects/bacteria can be transmitted to environmental surface. In particular, wet hands tend to attract microscopic objects by water tension.
2. 【Washed cloths and mops are not completely disinfected】
Dirty cloths and mops are usually disinfected with sodium hypochlorite,then reused. In this case, we should not expect much disinfection effect. Disinfection may be inadequate and a storage method may not be appropriate. In rare cases, washed cloths and mops are not sufficiently dried. For instance, it is assumed that we spray disinfectant solution on an insufficiently-disinfected cloth for cleaning environmental surface. In such circumstance, the insufficiently-dried cloth could transmit bacteria on the cloth to environmental surface due to insufficient disinfection.
3.【Arrangement of cleaning tools in the cleaning cart】
The tools in the cleaning cart may be arranged incorrectly. For instance, are unused items and used items messily mixed in the cleaning cart? Is air permeability poor in the cleaning cart due to too many tools?
Does the arrangement in the cleaning cart cause accumulation of dirt?
1. Solution by understanding【How dusts on the floor can be transmitted to environmental surface】
- Extremely unsanitary dusts on the floor surface in term of quantity/quality compared to dusts on shelf or desk. Gloves will absolutely be replaced after cleaning dusts on the floor surface. (If a cleaning sheet for collecting dusts on the floor surface is disposable, the disposal place should be defined as a place where other people never be able to touch the sheet. )
- Gloves must be replaced after cleaning a wet area (water-related place).
- If a cleaning cart becomes a breeding ground for bacteria, it would be the same situation as spreading bacteria during the cleaning work. The cleaning cart should be disinfected with using alcohol and then completely dried every day after use. In addition, the order of disinfection procedure should start with cleaner tools.
- Hands may often become dirty during the cleaning work even a cleaning staff does not notice. For that reason, the fixtures/furnitures in a room that a cleaning staff touches during the cleaning work should be cleaned by antiseptic solution at the end of the cleaning process.
2. Solution by understanding【Washed cloths and mops are not completely disinfected】
- A person should not wet cloths or mops with using a spray, but he/she must completely soak them in a container with antiseptic solution. In addition, a person should use ready-made disposable alcohol towels, not washed cloths.
3. Solution by understanding 【Arrangement of cleaning tools in the cleaning cart】
- Remove unnecessary tools for easier arrangement to manage
- No mixture of unused and used tools/products.
- Arrange tools/products by prioritizing sanitation over usability