A significant outbreak of norovirus or swine flu can really damage a company’s profitability and alienate customers because of compromised standards of service. While bacteria and viruses are always with us, and many, like the winter vomiting virus norovirus, or H1N1 swine flu, are very contagious, they can be contained and the damage they cause can be reduced. The key is in education of the workforce and sensible aseptic procedures.
Proof that extensive publicity does not always achieve the desired result is evident from the fact that, despite endless health propaganda, the majority of people do not clean their hands after going to the lavatory. Perhaps worse from a viral standpoint, many still do not use a tissue when they sneeze or, even if they do, do not dispose of the tissue hygienically after the sneeze.
Commuters take infection to work on their hands it has been shown that 1 in 4 public transport commuters have traces of human faeces on their hands when boarding buses and trains and around 1 million people each year are affected by the winter vomiting bug, norovirus. Small wonder, then, that, during the working day, pathogens are added to desk surfaces, the arms of office chairs, keyboards and equipment. It has been calculated that UK business loses £4.0 billion per year to avoidable illness.
Design the washroom scientifically
Effective cleaning and asepsis procedures can reduce that figure dramatically. Just the choice of hand dryers in the washroom can significantly reduce the pathogen count on hands after washing – the latest Dyson hand dryers have been shown, in a study conducted at the University of East London, to leave some 10 fewer pathogens on hands than the nearest competing hand dryer, and some 12 fewer than paper towels.
The need for scientific understanding and practice extends to every area of the design of washrooms. High technology, ventilation and air purification systems play a key role in keeping pathogen counts low, and designing washrooms with no door and coved flooring greatly improves functionality where cleaning is concerned. Costs can be considerably reduced by water management and the recycling of gray water. Effectiveness of asepsis procedures and cost cutting measures can be monitored by regular audits and improved by precisely controlled maintenance.
And remember, an effective hand hygiene policy can reduce absenteeism by up to 50 .
So what about your corporate image?
A key benefit of well designed and properly maintained washrooms is the effect on your organisation’s corporate image. Just as people judge hotels by the standard of the bedrooms and en suite facilities, as much as by the food, visitors to your company will judge your standards by the quality, comfort, atmosphere and appearance of your washrooms. If the loos don’t smell right, customers will wonder about your quality assurance as applied to your products and services.
It is essential that facilities managers who commission cleaning services look again at what their cleaning contractors are doing and how they use quality assurance procedures to monitor effectiveness.
There has to be a shift of emphasis away from ‘polished and tidy’ and a move towards ‘clean and infection free’. Cleaning companies and teams, who understand the importance of hygiene in the washroom and lavatories, have to become as much aware of user’s perceptions as of the hard facts of cleanliness.
Outside the washrooms, there has to be greater awareness of less obvious sources of cross infection the handles and finger plates on doors, the receptionist’s desk and computer keyboards. Workers must stop regarding disinfection as somebody else’s job, and use disinfectant wipes during the day. People must be made to realise that they do not clean their hands thoroughly enough or often enough.
My company, Albany Hygiene Facilities, sponsors the annual ‘Loo of the Year’ competition as part of its national drive to raise standards of washroom hygiene. Now, on the age old Jesuit principle ‘Give me the child until he is seven years old, and I will give you the man’, Albany has undertaken a leading role in educating children to understand the necessity of frequent hand cleaning, particularly after visiting the lavatory.
The Albany Healthy Schools Programme
The Albany Healthy Schools Programme is actively helping children to understand that viruses and bacteria cause illness and how frequent hand cleaning can help to keep everybody well. Albany is making learning about infection and hand cleaning fun for children by running the Albany Max Road Show, which has been touring independent preparatory schools since 19th October 2009 with a live animated character – Albany Max – to get the message across to the children.
Albany is also offering schools a free A+ Hygiene Audit, which includes a report highlighting non compliance with legislation, recommendations for hygiene improvement and suggestions for saving water and energy.
Washrooms a key part of cutting costs
More and more companies are looking to their washrooms to make savings. We advise companies how to save thousands of pounds with effective water management systems, by eradicating paper towels and using the new generation of hand dryers to save energy and reduce pathogen counts. When times are tough, companies must adopt smart solutions.
Albany provides its customers with hygiene consultancy and washroom solutions nationwide, including adept advice on sustainable washroom equipment and design, maintenance and education. Call us on 0870 366 5777 for more information.
Author Resource:-
Albany facilities provides its customers with expert hygiene consultancy and washroom solutions throughout the UK. They impart adept advice and knowledge on sustainable washroom equipment, design, maintenance and education. Their mission is to raise hygiene standards by supplying cutting edge commercial washroom equipment and insight to make the UK’s washrooms a better place. For more information visit http://www.albanyfacilities.com
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