Healthcare cleaning services are designed to specifically to address the janitorial needs of the medical industry. The Centers for disease Control and Prevention estimates that nearly 1.7 million Hospital Acquired Infections (HAI’s) contracted by patients contribute to 99,000 deaths each year. And, these infections, and the resulting fatalities, are completely preventable through proper sanitation to reduce the spread of bacteria and viruses.
Defining Hospital-Acquired Infections (HAI’s)
Hospital-Acquired Infections, are also called nosocomial infections, or sometimes called health care-associated infections to acknowledge they occur in both hospital and non-hospital settings, such as outpatient clinics or nursing homes. Whatever you may call them, they are a major problem for both patient and care provider. A patient who may already be in a weakened state is even more susceptible to infections than their healthier counterparts, so it is extremely important to prevent such infections from occurring at all.
Infection can be spread from staff to patient directly, or through such means as equipment or bed linens. However, they can originate from any number of sources, or even an undetermined one. In some cases, the patient’s own skin microbiota are the cause.
Nosocomial infections cause severe pneumonia and infections of the bloodstream and urinary tract, as well as other problems for the patient. It is important to note that many of these infections are antimicrobial resistance, which then makes treatment for the infection very difficult.
Prevention of Hospital-Acquired Infections (HAI’s)
Preventing HAI’s needs to be a priority for any health care provider or medical office. Part of this prevention includes having your space professionally cleaned. Healthcare cleaning services staff use several approaches in the prevention of HAI’s– such as evidence-based management. If the type and/or source of the infection can be identified, the cleaning crew will know how to manage it and prevent an outbreak.
They may have to focus on indoor air-quality, for instance, if it is hospital-acquired pneumonia. If it is something such a nosocomial rotavirus, the team must focus on frequently touched surfaces, in other cases the focus may be the linens. There are protocols for medical offices regarding everything from uniforms to the sterilization of equipment that is used, a professionally trained team of medical office cleaners will know what the protocol is and make sure they use the proper chemical cleaning agents and equipment for the job.
Healthcare Cleaning Services Require Sterilization and Isolation
When it comes to HAI’s, the most important things to do are sterilization and isolation. When sterilizing, one must be sure to not just sanitize, but to also be sure to kill any microorganisms using either chemicals, dry heat, or steam under pressure. Isolation is achieved by being careful to never cross contaminate. A professional cleaning company trains their employees on what procedures to follow to make sure cross-contamination does not occur.
At AAA Building Maintenance our effective, responsive janitorial and building facilities service didn’t happen by accident – it has been accomplished through hard work and genuine concern for our clients. We will meet or beat any expectations you may have for any other company offering healthcare cleaning services in Denver. Our employees are trained for, and take pride in maintaining your building to the high standards required by hospitals using the latest in EPA registered disinfectants and the latest in cleaning technologies. Contact us today to schedule your FREE building audit and quote, or call 303-716-2802.
