The Covid-19 pandemic has raised awareness of the critical role of Environmental Services (EVS) in preventing the spread of germs that can cause illness within healthcare environments as well as the need for targeted training and education in the EVS field. EVS professionals play a pivotal role in both maintaining a clean and sanitary environment for the patient but also in reducing potential patient harm. Regardless of the type of pathogen, routine cleaning and disinfection with an EPA-registered, broad-spectrum disinfectant remain a mainstay in any infection prevention and control program in healthcare facilities. Those that use disinfectants, such as EVS Technicians, must be thoroughly knowledgeable about any disinfectants that are used in the facility including core items such as contact time, proper use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), first aid, and product disposal instructions. It can be quite difficult to find comprehensive training programs designed to enhance cleaning operations and improve operational efficiencies. In addition, EVS departments often face difficulties in staff retention, which creates a continuous need for on-demand training and education.

This is why I’d like to share information about CloroxPro’s new HealthyClean™ Certificate Program — Trained Specialist Course, which is designed to meet the unique needs of both frontline cleaning personnel as well as managers and supervisors. Because this certificate program is accredited by the ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB), it has been subjected to the industry’s most stringent reviews, vetted by top experts, and is a globally recognized certificate standard for quality program development and training comprehension. This high bar for approval is the testimony of the program’s contents, design, and ability to assess program participants.

In addition to the specific cleaning for health content incorporated into the program, the required elements to meet many standards from the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for both frontline personnel and supervisory personnel are also included. OSHA-specific topics include bloodborne pathogens, waste disposal, and handling sharps appropriately. The use of the CloroxPro™ HealthyClean™ Certificate Program can not only assist EVS leaders with meeting compliance requirements but also help protect EVS technicians from the inherent risks of infection found in healthcare facilities.

To successfully and reliably mitigate risks associated with the healthcare environment, EVS leaders should prioritize the three P’s: People, Process and Product. First, leaders must have the right people with the correct, role-specific competency to perform the role. Next, the correct processes must be in place that are both highly reliable and closely monitored such as environmental cleaning and disinfection of a patient's room following discharge. Last, EVS frontline professionals must be equipped with the most comprehensive product solutions available to combat environmental pathogens. This comprehensive approach provides the best possible outcomes when it is rigorously followed. This three-tiered approach can assist EVS leaders with identifying risks associated with cleaning and disinfection and healthcare team safety issues such as exposure to bloodborne pathogens.

1) People:

2) Process:

3) Product:

By improving the overall competency of individual frontline cleaning personnel and those who supervise them, EVS leaders can immediately use the CloroxPro™ HealthyClean™ Certificate Program to train and deliver annual training to provide frontline EVS Technicians and supervisors with the essential knowledge and skills to help them improve overall competency. To learn more about CloroxPro™ Healthy Clean™, visit: www.CloroxPro.com/healthyclean.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created unprecedented and continuing difficulties for healthcare providers, health systems, and patients alike. With any novel pathogen such as SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, public health professionals, and healthcare providers continuously evolve their approach to the pandemic response. During times of increased focus on certain infection control practices such as hand hygiene agents and environmental disinfectants, challenges to the supply chain can rapidly emerge. Still, they can be addressed by implementing a robust pandemic response plan to facilitate appropriate product substitutions.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have released extensive guidance regarding the use of EPA-registered disinfectants during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the EPA created a specific list, List N. Disinfectants for Coronavirus (COVID-19). This is a list of EPA-registered disinfectants that are deemed effective against SARS-CoV-2. The use of products on this validated list from the EPA provides healthcare users an additional level of assurance of efficacy against the virus that causes COVID-19.

Many disinfectant manufacturers offer the same active ingredient formulations in multiple product formats (ready-to-use wipes, liquids, sprays, etc.), which can mitigate any significant impacts for healthcare facilities during pandemic scenarios. Similar to stockpiling certain medical equipment and supplies such as Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), it would be advisable for healthcare facilities to have a comprehensive pandemic plan in place to address increased environmental disinfection needs across the healthcare continuum of care.

Analogous to the CDC’s approach to the use of PPE, a comparable process can easily be created for identifying appropriate disinfectant product substitutes during a pandemic crisis. As such, a three-tiered approach can be implemented to include:

When selecting product substitutes, healthcare users should consult the EPA’s master label for the product being evaluated, review any technical information on surface compatibility, as well as carefully review the product’s Safety Data Sheet (SDS). The intended location of use for the product can also impact the ideal product to be used such as inpatient vs. outpatient settings where risks would be substantially different. Certain inert or inactive ingredients, for example, may increase the risk for equipment degradation, so healthcare users should contact the disinfectant manufacturers and request a complete listing of all product ingredients and information on known equipment compatibility with commonly found surfaces and medical devices used in healthcare settings. Healthcare users of disinfectants should also consult the product instructional manual from the medical equipment manufacturer for specific cleaning and disinfection instructions.

When forced to select alternative disinfectants or disinfectant chemistries, Infection Preventionists and Environmental Services Leaders should evaluate these substitutes in terms of three primary criteria:

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to place significant strains on our healthcare systems and providers. Infection control practices such as disinfection, hand hygiene, and the appropriate use of PPE remain important aspects of decreasing the spread of SARS-CoV-2. Disinfectant manufacturers are the primary sources of expertise in the areas of product formulation, product format, contact times, material compatibility, and product safety. Infection Preventionists and EVS Leaders should closely collaborate with their preferred disinfectant manufacturer and medical suppliers on pandemic preparedness needs and the most appropriate product substitutions.

Moreover, many disinfectant manufacturers have created product substitution tools that can help ensure that all new products utilized within a facility will continue to meet the stringent infection control needs as identified by the Infection Prevention and Control Team. Pandemics require a collaborative, transparent, and highly communicative approach to overcome their impacts. While the healthcare industry continues to face challenges, it is certainly possible to maintain a safe standard of care related to environmental cleaning and disinfection by following a standardized approach.

For additional information:

Dr. Hudson Garrett Jr. is a paid consultant for Clorox Healthcare.

The following is an abridged article featured in the December 2020 issue of Healthcare Hygiene Magazine (see page 32).

As a healthcare provider that is part of a Regional COVID-19 response team, I have sadly seen the direct and indirect impacts of the ongoing threat posed by COVID-19. Countless lives have been directly or indirectly impacted including those of many healthcare providers at the front lines and healthcare executives charged with leading their organizations during challenging pandemic times. This ongoing pandemic is not expected to cease anytime soon, and the upcoming fall and winter respiratory infections season could potentially produce a new dilemma with concurrently circulating infectious pathogens such as Influenza, RSV, Rhinovirus, and SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19. Due to this concurrent circulation of respiratory viruses during the Fall and Winter, it is all the more important for healthcare facilities to not succumb to infection prevention fatigue and maintain an appropriate level of vigilance to the core practices of infection prevention and control.  

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has identified several core recommendations that can dramatically reduce the potential risk for the transmission of respiratory viruses. Below are several key steps that healthcare providers and infection prevention professionals should take to reduce the transmission of infectious respiratory illnesses:

Each of the steps referenced above plays a pivotal role in reducing the potential transmission of infectious respiratory viruses, keeping patients and healthcare providers safe, and also ensuring the continuity of clinical care operations. Every stakeholder in the healthcare delivery system must play an active role in recognizing and preventing the spread of these common respiratory pathogens. Through interprofessional collaboration, the use of efficacious infection prevention products such as disinfectants, hand sanitizers, and PPE, we can help effectively curb the transmission of respiratory illnesses.

For additional information:

To learn more about the EPA List N, visit: https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-registration/list-n-disinfectants-coronavirus-covid-19.

Dr. Hudson Garrett Jr. is a paid consultant for Clorox Healthcare.

Many infection preventionists regularly utilize clinical guidelines to guide their daily practice, but have you ever wondered how these national guidelines are developed? Many of the policies and practices that are used in infection prevention and control are developed by multidisciplinary groups whom create evidence-based guidelines. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion is primarily responsible for authoring evidence-based guidelines and guidance documents specifically to assist healthcare facilities and providers in reducing Healthcare-Care Associated Infections (HAIs). To aid the CDC in developing evidence-based guidance to the healthcare community, CDC and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) maintain the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC), which is a group of federally appointed healthcare experts who are charged with providing the CDC staff with strategic guidance on a wide variety of infection prevention and control challenges across the healthcare continuum of care. In addition to the voting members of the committee, there are also representatives from 21 clinical organizations which do not hold voting power. A senior member of CDC’s staff, the Designated Federal Official, serves as the official committee Secretary and official government representative to the group. This committee provides input not only to the CDC, but also to HHS. HICPAC is an extremely influential body that has tremendous impacts on the infection prevention and control community through the release of guidelines, guidance documents, and position statements that are viewed as the gold standard for both clinical practice as well as liability. These documents and recommendations are used widely in the infection prevention field and serve as the basis for many policies and procedures used in both inpatient and outpatient healthcare facilities.

As an infection preventionist, it’s critical to closely monitor the ongoing work that is being performed by HICPAC. Most HICPAC documents are sent out for official public comment prior to being finalized by the committee, and all healthcare professionals are encouraged to submit written comments along with supporting evidence. Engaging in this guideline creation and review process is a core responsibility of every infection prevention professional.

HICPAC typically meets 3–4 times per year formally, but members of the committee regularly interact through working group meetings. The in-person meetings are hosted at the CDC Headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia and the meetings are open to the public. All infection preventionists should attempt to participate in HICPAC meetings remotely by registering for the webcast of the event. Space is limited for the webcast, so it is imperative to register early to secure your reservation for each meeting. All of the HICPAC presentations as well as minutes are published on the HICPAC website within ninety days of the meeting concluding.  The many documents produced by HICPAC are routinely used by other regulatory and accreditation agencies to define standards of care and for documentation of compliance of the current CDC recommendations.

To learn more about HICPAC or to register for upcoming meetings, click here. To view the current CDC HICPAC Guidelines and Guidance documents, click here.

Dr. Hudson Garrett Jr. is a paid consultant for Clorox Healthcare.

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