Infection Control and Indoor Environmental Quality in Puerto Rican Nursing Homes and Long-Term Care Facilities

A new observational study was recently published in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology. It found that nursing home and long-term care patients and residents spent large portions of their time outside of their rooms and had frequent contact with staff and surrounding environments in places like lounges, dining halls, and physical and occupational therapy rooms.
 
While this may not come as a big surprise to some, it does reinforce the importance of building wide infection control efforts and not just a primary focus on the rooms of residents to help prevent healthcare-associated infection (HAIs). This is all the more vital as the study states that an estimated 2 million infections occur each year in nursing homes in the U.S. alone. Any infection in a person with a weakened or suppressed immune system can be a challenge and costly to treat. Unfortunately, a growing number of these infections are increasingly caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria that are very difficult to treat and can even be fatal. 
 
“This study is a good reminder for nursing home administrators, staff and infection control professionals to focus their efforts on the overall indoor environmental quality of the entire facility when cleaning and disinfecting programs are developed and assessed,” said Harry Pena, President of Zimmetry Environmental. “Hand hygiene, contaminated surfaces and air quality issues throughout the whole building can have an impact on infection rates in nursing homes and long-term care facilities.”
 
In Puerto Rico and across the Caribbean, nursing home, long-term care and hospital administrators and infection control professionals have access to the indoor environmental quality (IEQ) professionals at Zimmetry Environmental. Their experts can help to identify both bacteria and fungi from surfaces and air samples in addition to monitoring for exposure concerns to everything from particulate matter (PM) to chemicals. These services can help prevent illnesses, pinpoint the source of an outbreak if one has already occurred, and verify that surface and air cleaning and disinfection protocols are working effectively.   
 
To learn more about infection control, environmental pathogens or indoor air quality (IAQ) in nursing homes or other types of health care facilities, please visit www.zimmetry.com, call (787) 995.0005 or email info@zimmetry.com .
 
About Zimmetry Environmental
Since 2002, Zimmetry Environmental has been providing environmental consulting services to building owners and managers, architects, engineers, EHS professionals and Fortune 500 companies. The company is based in Puerto Rico and provides services across the Caribbean and Central America. The professionals at Zimmetry offer environmental compliance, indoor air quality, asbestos, lead-based paint, Phase I ESAs and general environmental consulting services.
 

Contact Information

Paul Cochrane

President

Cochrane & Associates, LLC

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