HEALTHCARE HYGIENE
Improving healthcare hygiene with purification
Gavin Holmes, Product Development Manager at Robert Scott, explains how healthcare settings can use technology to improve hygiene, while simultaneously reducing their impact on the environment.
Improving health, hygiene and safety: three key objectives that a cleaning regime must deliver on in any healthcare setting, from hospitals through to care homes. How can this be achieved at the same time as improving sustainability and creating efficiencies for janitorial staff?
Healthcare settings need regular and rigorous cleaning regimes to stop the spread of germs and bacteria to keep environments safe. That’s why we frequently see the use of synthetic chemicals applied to clean and disinfect areas. However, thanks to advancements in cleaning technology, there are more sophisticated and environmentally friendly ways to disinfect and keep bacteria at bay.
Robert Scott’s own customer research found that 78% of cleaning businesses ranked sustainability as being much more important to their customers in 2023, compared with just 51% who said the same in 2022. As a sector that’s worth nearly £59bn a year to the UK economy, and has historically been one of the biggest contributors to waste and contamination, these figures highlight a clear and encouraging step change in the cleaning industry’s mission to go green.
One development that has aided a move away from removing the need for chemicals and the single-use plastic bottles they’re suppled in, is air and surface purifiers. Using chemical-free UVC light technology, these units effectively remove germs and odours while producing purifying ozone and photoplasma disinfection, to improve overall air quality and reduce organic matter – both on surfaces and in the air.
Significantly more sustainable than traditional cleaning methods, this natural solution has been shown to deliver a 70% reduction of microorganisms in the air and can destroy viruses including influenza, E. coli, Listeria and Salmonella, as well as bacteria, mould, and other microcontaminants – making it an ideal solution for healthcare settings.
While education and the uptake of more eco-friendly cleaning solutions are on the rise; against the backdrop
40 | TOMORROW'S CLEANING
of cost-of-living pressures it’s vital that truly innovative technology is financially viable too. Our research also found that 68% of customers rated ‘demonstrating value for money’ as their biggest priority for 2023, making it clear that many businesses continue to feel the pinch.
Improved durability and longevity of cleaning products and solutions are a must to ensure that businesses – even at the most basic level – can protect their capital. Similarly, unexpected costs associated with maintenance and wear and tear must be well managed and accounted for.
Air and surface purifiers run automatically and require very minimal maintenance with just a UV lamp change every 12 months. It’s important to observe this annual bulb swap as UV lights will continue to emit light even after a year, giving the impression that they are still effective.
Selecting the right sized units to suit the size of the area is also important for any healthcare environment, from washrooms to wards. Ranging from 10-20m3 sizes of 30-50m3
, choosing the right solution is key to ensuring optimum cleaning and purification.
In the wake of COVID-19, public expectations of cleanliness and hygiene have understandably increased. Meanwhile, the effort to improve sustainability in all areas of our lives and specifically in business, has been placed under a spotlight.
Encouragingly, as the future of cleaning becomes smarter and more high-tech, the opportunity for businesses to improve the effectiveness of cleaning and reduce the spread of germs, all while gaining green credentials becomes a much greater possibility.
For more information about Robert Scott’s BSG AirCare range, call 01457 819400, email
info@robert-scott.co.uk, or visit the website below.
www.robert-scott.co.uk twitter.com/TomoCleaning up to rooms
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