Legionella
This may include scheduling testing during meals, or at recreation times, when residents are not in their rooms. In some cases, it may not be possible to completely remove all risk of Legionella proliferation and exposure. In these instances, a schedule of planned preventative maintenance tasks, as highlighted by the Legionella risk assessment, should be implemented, to ensure that Legionella bacteria levels are strictly controlled and kept within safe levels unlikely to harm your residents.
Avoiding the conditions for Legionella Control measures will be aimed at preventing the three conditions needed for Legionella bacteria to proliferate. These are, firstly, avoiding a water temperature between 25°C and 45°C. This will include ensuring that domestic hot water is sufficiently hot, and that any tanks or pipework conveying cold water are sufficiently screened to prevent being warmed by solar gain. Secondly, water should not be allowed to be static or slow moving but should flow freely and frequently. This may mean that less frequently used outlets must be deliberately flushed regularly, or even removed if they are rarely or never used.
Legionnaire’s disease is usually
contracted by breathing in microscopic particles of water from spray caused by flushing toilets or running taps or inhaled as particles from evaporated water. Flushing routines must therefore be carried out avoiding spray, flushing toilets with the lid closed, or running taps with water passing through a plastic bag or rubber glove to avoid splashing. A competent technician will immerse a shower head in water before flushing, to avoid spray. Lastly, Legionella requires a nutrient
source such as sediment or sludge in the system, ferrous iron particles caused by corrosion, or the presence of biofilms. Regular flushing helps to prevent these accumulating, but it is essential to clean any water tanks regularly to remove these hazards, as well as to remove any vermin which may have entered. In the case of corrosion, a water tank may need remedial work or replacement. Your Legionella services provider will discuss with you any issues found during the survey and liaise with you to plan and carry out remedial work. Once any issues have been addressed, they will create a new risk assessment, which you must keep up-to-date, and instruct your own team on regular ongoing testing and flushing routines. Regular water testing is fairly simple, so you will probably be able to carry this out in-house. It is advisable for your Responsible Person or Duty Holder to attend a Highfield level 3 Award in Legionella Control for Responsible Persons course, which explains
your legal responsibilities and the essentials of Legionella prevention and control, at an accredited training centre such as our own training facility.
Meticulous planning When planning a site visit to your care facility, we would expect your service provider to follow a number of steps, as follows. The service provider will book in the
work, agreeing a convenient time and date with you. The provider will also complete a Risk Assessment and Method Statement (RAMS) and should make sure that all on-site technicians visiting your premises have a current DBS check. They should explain what will happen on the day and check that any pre-visit requirements are understood and in place. This risk assessment is for the visit itself and is carried out in order to determine any possible hazards or potential mishaps. The service provider should make sure that they predict any likely problems and what their outcome and consequences might be, so that there is a plan of action to deal with them, should they arise. At this stage, for your first visit, a generic risk assessment will be carried out – your site-specific risk assessment should be carried out by the provider’s surveyor once they are on-site. The Method Statement element is an essential part of a workplace safety plan. This should be given to the on-site team to brief them on what to expect and how to work safely at all times on your premises. The Method Statement should contain specific instructions on how to safely perform a work-related task or operate equipment. This will give the team an overview of what to expect and remind them how to work safely with each piece
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