Hygiene is an important priority in washrooms across the UK, especially when considering hospital cleaning.
The main factors to be considered when maintaining hospital washrooms is cross contamination and making the facilities accessible to people who are ill or frail.
The risks of acquiring infections in a hospital washroom are higher than traditional away-from-home washrooms as visitors to hospital washrooms are likely to be infectious or vulnerable to infection.
Keeping appropriate supplies such as hand towels in the hand towel dispensers help keep cross contamination from occurring.
Using paper towel dispensers is key to stopping cross contamination.
Hand towels should be soft and gentle on the hands and are generally favoured in hospital cleaning as they are considered the more hygienic option. Hand towels are also quicker than air dryers and may encourage visitors to dry hands more thoroughly.
The motion of physically wiping hands with a hand towel has also been found to dislodge further bacteria after washing.
Air hand dryers may also be too noisy on a patient ward.
Good design, a diligent cleaning regime and hygienic washroom systems are all key elements of a good healthcare washroom. Together these will provide a successful formula for reducing cross-contamination in the healthcare washroom – while also keeping down costs.