“Do I need to disinfect that?”
As a Facility Manager, Cleaning Manager, or Business Owner, you’ve probably asked yourself this question before. Knowing whether to clean a surface or disinfect it is the key to helping prevent sickness and providing a healthier and safer environment for employees, customers, and guests.
Using a cleaning product to wipe away blood or sweat from a surface may not seem like a big deal. But blood may carry germs (bloodborne pathogens) that we can’t see. So, simple cleaning rather than proper disinfecting of the contaminated surface could leave your facility and your customers vulnerable to a range of pathogens that cause serious infections–infections like MRSA, Staph, hepatitis, and more.
It’s important to know WHEN disinfecting is required to keep equipment, surfaces, and people safe. It’s also important to know HOW to disinfect.
WHAT DOES “DISINFECT” MEAN?
Disinfect means to remove microorganisms from surfaces or equipment using an EPA-registered disinfectant such as a disinfecting wipe or a liquid cleaner.
Disinfectants are tested and proven to kill certain types of germs and viruses that cause illness, specifically the ones listed on the disinfectant label. To disinfect effectively, you must allow the product to sit on the surface for the recommended dwell time listed on the product label.
WHEN TO DISINFECT
Disinfecting is required in some situations to keep germs from spreading. Here are 6 scenarios when cleaning or sanitizing isn’t good enough.
1. BLOOD CONTAMINATES A SURFACE
- Someone cuts their finger while cutting vegetables and blood gets onto the knife, cutting board, counter, and/or floor.
- A person with a nosebleed drips blood onto their keyboard.
- An employee making copies gets a paper cut and then drops blood onto the shared printer’s touch screen.
Anytime blood comes into direct contact with a surface, that surface needs to be disinfected. Bloodborne pathogens are infectious germs that live in the human bloodstream and can cause infection.
Diseases that spread via blood include malaria, syphilis, and brucellosis, Hepatitis B (HBV), Hepatitis C (HCV), and the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV).
2. SWEAT IS LEFT ON A SURFACE OR EQUIPMENT
It happens at gyms across the world every day. A member uses a piece of equipment and leaves their sticky, stinky sweat all over the machine without wiping it when they’re done. Aside from being bad manners, this is a dangerous practice.
Sweat is known for spreading skin and fungal infections including MRSA, pityriasis rosea, and ringworm. Failing to disinfect surfaces in your gym or fitness center puts other people at risk for contracting these unpleasant gym infections.
3. VOMIT TOUCHES A PUBLIC SURFACE
Vomit is categorized as a biohazard material and is best known for spreading norovirus. It’s even more dangerous if blood is found in it. As mentioned, blood can cause infections such as HIV, Hepatitis B, or Hepatitis C.
Whenever vomit is comes into contact with a surface, you’ll need trained cleaning personnel to thoroughly disinfect the area. Make sure they deodorize the space as well!
4. A KNOWN PATHOGEN IS TRANSFERRED TO A SURFACE
- Let’s say a person who thinks they may have the flu visits a clinic for treatment. During their visit, they touch several surfaces and sneeze a few times.
- Or someone with strep throat goes grocery shopping for essential items. While they’re in the store, they touch uncovered produce without sanitizing their hands.
These are two scenarios of how pathogens can be transferred from sick people to surrounding surfaces. The scary truth is that most people don’t stay home when they are sick. This means that every time they are outside of their home, they have the potential to infect other people.
Since there’s no way to prevent sick people from entering your facility entirely, you should be sure your cleaning schedule includes regular sanitizing and disinfecting.
5. RAW FOOD TOUCHES A SURFACE
It’s typical for raw food to come into contact with several surfaces before it’s cooked. For example, a chef cooking chicken breasts may set raw chicken on a cutting board to prepare it. If the board isn’t disinfected afterward and then celery or other vegetables are cut on that same board, there is risk of cross-contamination.
This is a common way food poisoning happens. When preparing raw food, especially meat, it’s standard practice to disinfect kitchen implements after use.
Even if you don’t prepare food in your facility, there’s still a threat of foodborne illness. Think communal eating areas, counters, and even refrigerators and microwaves.
If people eat or prepare meals anywhere in your business, you’ll need to make sure those spaces are disinfected.
6. URINE OR FECES TOUCH A SURFACE
Shockingly, fecal matter and urine are among the top ways bacteria and viruses spread. If you think that these elements are only limited to your restrooms, think again. Believe it or not, many people don’t wash their hands properly or at all after using the restroom.
Because of this, it’s no surprise that 20% of office coffee mugs contain fecal matter. Since urine and feces are bodily fluids, they have the potential to spread contagions as well as particles. Norovirus and E.coli are common infections that can spread via fecal matter.
Fecal matter or urine can make their way surfaces in a number of ways:
- A baby’s diaper accidentally leaks on a changing table.
- A child has an “oopsie” while visiting your facility.
- A person uses the restroom and doesn’t wash their hands afterward.
Though you may not be fully aware that fecal matter has contaminated a surface in your business, this is why it’s important to ABD – Always Be Disinfecting.
TO DISINFECT IS TO HELP PROTECT
When in doubt, always choose to disinfect. It’s better to be safe than sorry, especially when it comes to killing germs. There’s no such thing as a surface being “too safe”.
A general rule of thumb is to regularly disinfect the following: food contact surfaces, restroom surfaces, surfaces that come into contact with bodily fluids (think fitness centers), and high-touch surfaces. as always, read product labels or reference product web pages for directions on how to disinfect and what the dwell time should be for a given disinfectant. Some disinfectants may need to be rinsed after they do their work.
Knowing when to disinfect is only part of the battle though. Understanding what products to clean with can drastically help improve your disinfecting efforts.
Check out this guide to get started picking out the right disinfecting wipes to create safer, healthier spaces in your facility.