By Peter Sheldon
Oct. 7, 2010
With the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimating that, on average, between 5 and 20 percent of Americans contract the flu annually, it’s important for businesses to put measures in place to curb the spread of flu in the office. Your staff is in close quarters at all times, passing items from hand to hand; the conditions are ripe to spread any flu bugs that might be present.
Hand-to-face contact is a primary way flu and other germs are spread, so the first and most important step in any program to prevent the spread of flu viruses is education. Keeping effective hand washing and hygiene at the top of everyone’s mind using flyers, e-mails or meetings is the best way to ensure people are properly cleaning their hands on a regular basis. Another way to encourage hand-hygiene is installing stations with alcohol-based hand sanitizer throughout the office. This simple step can help to ensure your staff will be more likely to clean their hands intermittently throughout the day.
Proper surface cleaning and disinfection is another key component to reducing the spread of illness in the office. The utilization of a hygienic cleaning service contractor, or properly trained in-house cleaning staff for after hours cleaning, is critically important. Contractors focused on proper hygienic cleaning leverage a variety of strategies and technologies that replace some of the less effective tactics of traditional cleaning methods.
- Touch-free spray-and-vacuum systems. By saturating surfaces with hospital-grade disinfectant and rinsing with a high pressure stream of fresh water, no-touch spray-and-vacuum systems offer the most comprehensive disinfection and soil removal of any cleaning application. The disinfectant is provided the proper dwell time to maximize its germ-killing capabilities before it is rinsed with clear water and recovered from the floor with a high-power wet vacuum. The technique produces results that have been scientifically proven to reduce the presence of soils and pathogens on surfaces that are tolerant of this wet cleaning process to a level that meets even food contact standards.
- No-dip flat mop technologies. Equipped with super-absorbent fabric that traps and holds germs, lightweight flat mops utilize split microfibers that are 99 percent more effective at retaining soil and matter than traditional mops. No-dip flat mops use only clean solution to remove dirt and soils—increasing soil and germ removal and reducing the risk of cross-contamination, because the mop surface does not come into contact with contaminated solution.
- EPA-registered, hospital-grade disinfectants. To really get at flu viruses, strong (but safe) disinfectants are recommended. In order to reduce the risk of surface contact transmission, disinfectants that are registered with the EPA to be effective against influenza should be deployed with a process that enables the proper dwell time for maximum effectiveness.
- Bucket immersion of cleaning cloths and wet wiping for applying disinfectant. A 2009 study performed by the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America found that enhanced cleaning protocols can reduce the spread of MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) to hospital patients exposed to rooms in which the prior occupant had been colonized or infected. The same holds true for flu germs, which tend to live on surfaces for more than a day. In lieu of traditional spray and wipe techniques, bucket immersion and wet wiping guarantees that germs and bacteria on cloths are eliminated before the next surface is cleaned.
- Color-coded microfiber cloths. While microfiber is the most effective textile available for soil and germ removal, cloths that are overused and not changed frequently have the capacity to spread germs between surfaces in the office. Some studies suggest that even if the germs are dead they may present a rich food source for new bacteria. Therefore, the concept of cross-contamination presents a serious problem in the cleaning world. To eliminate the possibility of spreading germs from one area to another, a color-coded cloth is utilized in a single, designated area of the office and/or facility, making it 99 percent more effective at removing soil and germs and dramatically reducing cross-contamination in the office.
Peter J. Sheldon Sr., CBSE, brings over 20 years of experience in the building services contracting industry to his position as vice president of operations and development of Coverall Health-Based Cleaning System. Sheldon works closely with the Coverall sales and operations teams to spearhead initiatives that further the Company’s strategic objectives. Sheldon is among the elite group of building service professionals to qualify for the Certified Building Service Executive designation.