Are COVID-19 protocols controlling other pathogens at the same time?

Cleaning companies have focused on COVID-19 more than other healthcare-acquired infections.

Since the pandemic began, Coronavirus has been the illness most reported as a health care-acquired infection (HAI). And being compared to other illnesses such as C. difficile (C. diff), methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), and norovirus. As  CNN informs, COVID-19 was the third leading cause of death last year behind heart disease and cancer. 

Cyan Labs Experts commented that "Since the vaccination process started, we noticed an important decrease in the use of hand sanitizers. We can see that people in general are starting to feel at ease with the vaccines, and that could lead to an increase in the spread curve. The world population will soon enter a face mask resting phase, as well as a laid-back period in hygienic measures. Eventually though, we will realize that implementing better cleaning habits in our everyday lives should be within our best practices, and we will definitely be more aware of every surface that we get in contact with. Proper washing and cleaning is the base of a healthy environment and sanitizers are the finishing touch of the task."

According to GOJO Industry’s (*1) vice-president Chris Wakefield, the focus and emphasis on COVID-19 precautions has been necessary to avoid overwhelming the health services with multiple illnesses. SARS CoV-2 hygiene measures like handwashing and sanitizing not only help keep COVID-19 at bay; they also are effective against MRSA, C. diff, sepsis, and norovirus. “It is important that people continue to adhere to these good practices once the pandemic eventually eases,” Wakefield said.

Joanne Gilliard, Jangro Ltd. (*2) CEO, said, “COVID-19 hasn’t really changed the way in which cleaning is performed—but it has increased its frequency. It has also led to a surge in demand for cleaning and hygiene products and has impacted operatives in other ways, such as in the increased use of comprehensive personal protective equipment (PPE).”

Mark Hazelwood, Clenetix (*3) director and co-founder, added that cleaning and hand hygiene will not fade away when the pandemic is over, “This heightened sense of awareness around hygiene is here to stay and people will remain extra vigilant for many years to come—particularly in healthcare facilities where vulnerability is higher.”

Thomas Bergin, Essity’s (*4) health care hygiene marketing director, said COVID-19 has helped to improve cleaning standards and made health care professionals more aware to clean effectively. “The pandemic has had the effect of highlighting the importance of hygiene in all care settings,” he said.

(*1) GOJO Industries, Inc., is a privately held manufacturer of hand hygiene and skin care products founded in 1946, in Akron, Ohio

(*2) Jangro is the largest network of independent janitorial distributors in the UK and Ireland.

(*3) Clenetix is a cleaning management software company in the UK.

(*4) Essity is a leading hygiene and health company from Sweden


Source: CMM Online,  CDC, European Cleaning Journal,