Monitoring environmental cleaning in healthcare settings

The transmission of healthcare acquired infections (HAI) due to contamination of near-patient surfaces and equipment can pose serious health threat for patients. Of particular concern, is the increased HAI by pathogens such as Clostridium difficile and Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). HAIs are a major cause of extended patient stays, rising costs and even mortality rates. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Prevention Guidelines for Environmental Infection Control in healthcare facilities encourages the implementation of programs to optimize high-touch surface cleaning and structured monitoring capabilities.

Visual inspections can be subjective and unreliable to assess environmental cleanliness. Implementation of consistent cleaning and surveillance program providing immediate actionable results is key to preventing HAI. The measurement of organic Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) on surfaces using a luciferase assay is being commonly used to evaluate cleanliness in food preparation industries. Most organic material including blood, skin cells, other bodily fluids, and micro-organisms contain ATP. Neogen’s AccuPoint® Advanced HC ATP hygiene monitoring system features a hand-held instrument and unique sampling device that measure ATP levels on a variety of surfaces, including liquid containers, dispensers, receptacles and automated systems. This is coupled with an easy-to-use management tool that can generate a variety of performance reports that conveniently exports and converts raw data into actionable management information on best practices and performance objectives. Implementing such objective tools and measurable indices for environmental cleaning validation and tracking can significantly reduce the risk of HAI in healthcare settings.