New microfibre technology squares up to HAIs

Published: 16-Jun-2016

Effective healthcare facility cleaning is a critical component in the battle against HAIs. James Taylor, Director of Product Marketing, cleaning materials, Chicopee, explains how microfibre technology is setting new standards in hospital cleaning protocols

Inadequate hygiene is well known to be one of the main causes of Healthcare Acquired Infections (HAIs) in hospitals, with an estimated four million cases reported annually in Europe1 alone. Of these, 37,0001 cases are fatal. HAIs result in 16 million extra days spent in hospital each year, and the indirect financial costs are estimated to be €7bn per annum.1

The good news is that even the lowest estimates predict that at least 20%2 of HAIs are preventable by implementing a co-ordinated and tightly controlled cleaning system using effective solutions. Choosing the most effective cleaning materials is crucial to achieving successful hospital cleaning protocols.

Microfibre is the material of choice, according to the NHS National Patient Safety Agency’s (NPSA) Revised Healthcare Cleaning Manual, which recognises that microfibre mops and cloths enable efficient removal of microscopic particles. The NPSA manual reports that many hospitals using such cloths have noticed that the time taken to perform cleaning tasks is reduced, and that the introduction of microfibre has been followed by improvements in measured cleaning scores. Choosing a high grade (100%) microfibre cloth should guarantee the best results, as some cloths contain as little as 20% microfibres, which dilutes the cleaning effect.

Proprietary technology developed by Avintiv, a developer of speciality materials used in infection prevention, has further improved on the traditional woven microfibre cloth used by most cleaners. The company has developed a material that provides the highest level of bacteria removal from surfaces, yet is lightweight for easy disposal.

A solution was also needed that removed the risks associated with laundering cloths. Following feedback received from users and using Avintiv’s patented APEX technology, a new material was developed for a range of products that not only provide excellent cleaning performance, but are also lightweight and do not require laundering.

The technology creates fibres that are 80% finer than standard microfibres, resulting in a more efficient and effective cleaning cloth. Dirt, dust and bacteria are easily picked up and trapped within the cloth until it is rinsed. The new material has been independently tested to demonstrate 99.99% removal of bacteria3 from surfaces, with no transfer4 to a second surface.

Making sure that the cloth is used correctly is important and the NPSA Cleaning Manual recommends turning and folding it during cleaning to expose a new surface area as the task progresses, using one cloth for an area no larger than half of a six-bed patient bay.

Disposable cloths are not only preferred by pro-active end users, but they are also advised in healthcare settings. A study published in the American Journal of Infection Control found that typical laundering practices were insufficient for removing potentially harmful bacteria from reusable cloths; 93% of the old-style cloths commonly used to clean hospital rooms and tested after laundering still contained pathogens that could trigger HAIs5.

Using a disposable cloths such as Chicopee’s Microfibre Light, which has the same cleaning ability as traditional microfibre cloths, can contribute significantly to eradicating the risk of cross contamination on hospital wards. Added to this is the benefit that each of these cloths comes with on-sheet visual instructions recommending short term use and then disposal of the cloth. These pictograms also provide vital colour-coding for the different products, once again helping to reduce the risk of cross-contamination in critical areas.

In healthcare facilities where hygiene and cleanliness are important, using solutions that harness the mechanical cleaning power of microfibre can make light work of critical wiping tasks, and promote a healthy, contamination-free environment; all factors that combine to help in the struggle to reduce HAIs.

References

1. WHO http://www.who.int/gpsc/country_work/gpsc_ccisc_fact_sheet_en.pdf

2. CDC http://www.cdc.gov/HAI/pdfs/hai/Scott_CostPaper.pdf

3. Externally certified to officially documented test methods to produce a 4-log removal of S.aureus and E.Coli from a stainless steel surface

4. CDC http://www.cdc.gov/hicpac/pdf/guidelines/Disinfection_Nov_2008.pdf

5. L. Y. Sifuentes, et al. American Journal of Infection Control, 41,(10), pp912–915

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