CLEANING & HYGIENE
A Clean Bill of Health
Joanne Gilliard, CEO of Jangro, discusses how cleaning and hygiene can limit the spread of infection, guard against hygiene risks and boost health and wellbeing for both staff and
residents, noting key germ hot spots and how to tackle them.
In the past, a cleaning operative’s main goal was to ensure whatever they were cleaning looked clean. Nowadays, however, that is simply not enough. Of course, it is still important to leave a just-cleaned space with a gleaming appearance, but there is a greater significance placed on ensuring buildings are hygienically clean, and making them healthier environments in which to work, live or visit.
This is absolutely crucial for care, residential and nursing homes as well as for other healthcare facilities. A clean environment is essential to the safety and wellbeing of their vulnerable and oſten elderly residents and patients, who have a higher susceptibility to infection. Aſter all, bacteria can travel so quickly and easily, so it is paramount that the management of such settings take a proactive approach to hygiene and safety, as having some simple infection control procedures in place will prevent any serious health hazards from occurring.
The simple act of handwashing is critical to help stop bacterial and viral infections from spreading and leading to illness. In fact, it is probably the most important thing we can do to protect the health, wellbeing and productivity of ourselves, and everyone we may come into contact with – including our families, colleagues, residents and patients.
However, repeated studies have shown that not enough people wash their hands as frequently as they should, or are not washing them for long enough to remove bacteria – despite copious amounts of research highlighting the benefits of good hand hygiene. It is therefore key to embed a healthy hand hygiene culture within your organisation and actively encourage all staff, visitors and even the residents themselves to practice this. Here at Jangro, we not only supply a range of products, but are also able to offer sound advice, to help our customers implement a successful healthy hand hygiene system.
Top tips include having a range of options available to increase the likelihood that a person will wash their hands more regularly and more effectively; ensuring effective yet
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gentle formulations (vital for the frequency with which staff in healthcare environments wash their hands); and influencing behaviour with eye-catching signage. Jangro offers a range of wall charts and posters, including a guide to hand washing, which can be downloaded for free and used in such facilities.
Planning is vital to ensure that ‘germ hot spots’ are tackled frequently. Washrooms, kitchens and reception areas are all prime locations that can become bacteria breeding grounds, if a thorough and hygienic cleaning schedule is not followed. Cleaning operatives should also pay particular attention to areas that are exposed to the human touch- telephones, door handles and liſt buttons may not sound like ‘dirty’ surfaces, but may in fact be harbouring germs.
Cleaning companies should ensure that their operatives receive training in which products to use, including when and how to use them properly. This includes understanding and implementing a colour-coding system – a simple but important step that makes a large contribution to hygiene standards and the elimination of cross-infection. At Jangro, we provide all of our customers, and their staff, free access to our e-learning platform, the Learning Management Solution. This accessible and versatile training platform offers high quality training and support resources, including a module on infection control and colour coding, that can complement and bolster any infection control regime.
A regular and thorough cleaning plan, together with good hand hygiene practice, is the best way to achieve clean and hygienic environment in residential, care and nursing homes. This not only ensures the health, safety and wellbeing of their residents and patients, but also benefits the staff and visitors.
www.jangro.net
www.tomorrowscare.co.uk
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