Dianna Steinbach, vice-president of ISSA, the worldwide cleaning industry association, and Dr. Stefan Wagener, scientific advisor for the Global Biorisk Advisory Council, explain how care homes can improve their infection control strategy
The Covid-19 outbreak has shone a light on the need for proper outbreak plans within care environments. Restrictions on visitors, isolating residents who may have Covid-19, and limiting internal interactions are what has been most prominently discussed.
However, a topic that has received less focus, but is equally as important, is proper cleaning and disinfecting to reduce risk not only to residents but also employees and others. Furthermore, once facilities reopen to visitors, there will be a need for heightened cleaning protocols to minimize the spread of the virus, which could threaten this at-risk population.
Every care facility will have a common infection prevention protocol but they are meant to reduce the risk of a resident catching something. That can leave gaps in protocols that can put employees at risk, as seen by the spikes in infection rates among health care workers in many countries during the pandemic.
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