Take care
Should cleaning workers’ health and safety in hospital cleaning be given greater priority? Ricky Smith, Field Sales Manager of Truvox International, reports on internet research.
A recent report by OSHA, the European Agency for Health and Safety at Work entitled ‘The Occupational Safety and Health of
Cleaning Workers’ points out that “the prevalence of health problems in the cleaning workforce is high” and that “there is a need for scientific studies…to better identify the risks…and the needs for prevention.”
The generally occurring problem, among all cleaning staff, of musculo-skeletal injuries due to lifting and handling heavy equipment are real issues in hospital cleaning. This is partly because cleaners frequently have to manoeuvre the machine they are using around clinical equipment and other obstructions related to treatment, but also because the hygiene standards necessary in hospitals make it necessary to use a greater variety of floor care machines than would be required in, for example, an office. In any given day, a hospital cleaning team is likely to use a scrubber dryer, a rotary burnishing or polishing machine, vacuum cleaners and possibly a carpet cleaning machine – plus the usual assortment of micro-fibre mops and handheld equipment.
That’s a lot of equipment, and a considerable amount of weight, which can represent a substantial opportunity for accidents and injury. Cleaners are also as much at risk of ‘slip and trip’ injuries as other hospital staff, patients and hospital visitors, so safety is a powerful argument in favour of using
32 | TOMORROW’S CLEANING | The future of our cleaning industry HEALTHCARE & HOSPITAL HYGIENE
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cordless battery-powered machines for healthcare cleaning. A key point raised by the OSHA report, in addition to slipping on damp floors or tripping over trailing power leads, is the risk of the moving parts of rotary floor care machines that can potentially damage the attached power cable and thereby causing electrical dangers to staff.
Cordless rotary burnisher The Truvox Orbis UHS Cordless Burnisher ticks all the boxes for hospital cleaning. Suitable for burnishing floor surfaces, the battery-powered Orbis UHS (ultra high speed) is ideal for daytime cleaning when patients, visitors or staff are present. With no power cable visible while the machine is in use, there is no risk of anybody tripping, or of the machine accidentally damaging its own cable. Its low profile makes it well suited to cleaning awkward hard-to-reach places and its ability to handle up to two hours of straight-line burnishing with a 43cm working width at 1500 rpm on one battery charge, maximises productivity and produces highly polished floors without major effort. The Orbis UHS has a unique floating pad drive that adjusts for uneven floors and a central castor that gives a more evenly distributed pad load for better performance.
Particularly important to hospital hygiene is the visible dust control system, with a floating skirt that stays in contact with the floor surface while the machine is working.
This prevents particles already on the floor becoming airborne because of the
cleaning, and also stops droplets or particles of cleaning chemicals being propelled into the air by the motion of the pad or brush. The airflow created by the rotation transfers dust or remnants of cleaning materials into a transparent and easily emptied dust collector.
Vacuums for cleaning under beds The latest Truvox Valet Upright Vac, which replaced the Truvox Commercial Vac, is lighter and quieter than its predecessor and has the supreme benefit for hospital cleaning. It is compact and manoeuvrable yet powerful machine, with a 1200-watt motor, a 37cm cleaning path cleaning right to the edge and a commercial-strength metal brush roll for maximum performance and toughness. The Quickdraw wand provides a 3.6m cleaning reach and the on-board cleaning tools are always easy to get to. Three-stage filtration includes a HEPA 10 filter to keep airborne particulate to a minimum.
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