HEALTHCARE & HOSPITAL FACI LITIES
fraught waiting room atmosphere, and some may even visit the facilities to store or use drug paraphernalia.
However, the washrooms have a crucial role to play in any A&E department. Hand hygiene is to be encouraged among patients and their companions, and this is where they can go to wash and dry their hands and remove any pathogens they may have picked up from surfaces. The supply of toilet tissue, soap and hand towels in A&E washrooms is also likely to dwindle fast – particularly when patients are suffering from stomach bugs or perhaps using paper to staunch their wounds.
“Only 78% of patients were seen within a four-hour window this January compared with nearly 82% in January 2020.”
Hospital managers therefore need to ensure that the washrooms are well maintained and kept well stocked with soap and paper to encourage good hand hygiene practices.
High-capacity systems that naturally reduce consumption will prevent the issue of product run-outs between maintenance checks. A high-capacity soap system such as the Tork Skincare Dispenser works well because it can contain up to 2,500 shots of foam soap, more than double the number in a liquid refill of the same size. Besides ensuring a continuous supply of soap, the system is also particularly easy to use - even for frail and elderly patients and those with low hand strength.
Paper towels are usually provided in healthcare washrooms because these are perceived as being a hygienic option and they dry the hands more rapidly than air dryers. This allows for a quicker throughput of washroom visitors and helps to aid social distancing.
Again, a high-capacity hand towel system will reduce the risk of the product running out during busy periods. The Tork PeakServe Continuous Hand Towel Dispenser holds up to 2,100 towels which means it is highly unlikely to run out between maintenance checks.
All dispensers should be robust and sturdy to resist any damage from vandalism. All Tork Elevation dispensers are durable and vandal-resistant, and the Tork SmartOne Toilet Paper Dispenser has been expressly designed with no wide openings or flat surfaces where needles or medication could be stored. The system is also particularly hygienic because the toilet paper is pulled out from the front of the unit, avoiding the need for patients to fumble around inside the dispenser where they could potentially contaminate their hands. The Tork SmartOne is also designed to naturally control consumption which reduces costs and prevents the risk of run-outs.
It is of course vitally important that cross-contamination in A&E is also alleviated outside the washroom. Casualty
www.tomorrowsfm.com
departments have introduced various measures during the COVID-19 pandemic to address this: for instance, one- way systems and social distancing measures have been instigated while plexiglass screens have been erected between cubicles to prevent the spread of infections.
There has also been a greater emphasis on cleaning in A&E. For example, cleaners are being tasked with the deep cleaning of ‘hot zone’ isolation areas where suspected COVID-19 patients are treated. This involves taking down curtains, dismantling beds and cupboards and sanitising the entire space. Additionally, all high-touch surfaces and washrooms must be cleaned continuously.
Cleaning in A&E, as in any hospital department, needs to be carried out carefully and methodically to minimise the risk of cross-contamination. At Essity we now offer a training package aimed specifically at healthcare cleaners.
Tork Interactive Clean Hospital Training incorporates tips and tricks for safe healthcare cleaning and also includes a ‘train-the-trainer’ module. This features a mini-microbiology element that deals with the dangers posed by micro-organisms in healthcare. The training is available in more than 15 languages besides English including French, Spanish, German, Arabic and Somali.
Not everyone will visit the washroom during their wait in A&E which means some patients will not take the opportunity to wash their hands. Hand sanitiser units should therefore be made available throughout so that everyone has a chance to sanitise.
“It is of course vitally important that cross-contamination in A&E is also alleviated outside the washroom.”
These units should be easy to spot so that they act as a timely prompt for patients. The Tork Alcohol Hand Sanitiser is available in the Tork Hygiene Stand on which hand hygiene messaging may be prominently displayed.
The NHS recently launched a series of public information campaigns to encourage people back to A&E and to seek help for non-COVID-19 conditions, and people are already starting to trickle back through those emergency room doors. But it could take months - or even years - before we are all able to relax sufficiently about COVID-19 to gather again in large numbers in casualty department waiting rooms.
However, in the interim it is vitally important that A&E departments are well managed, that all surfaces are kept scrupulously clean and that the washrooms are sanitised and kept well stocked with the wherewithal to carry out good hand hygiene.
The Tork Interactive Clean Hospital Training package is free to access at:
www.tork.co.uk/surfacehygiene.
www.tork.co.uk/cleancarehealthcare TOMORROW’S FM | 33
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68
