Anywhere kids, adults, and seniors gather, germs tend to spread. In daycare centers, schools, offices, and medical practices, the prospect of contagious illness like flu and bacterial infection are huge concerns. Imagine the potential for the spread of flu virus in the late fall and winter in a small, contained areas like a daycare kitchen. It is no surprise that infection avoidance is so important to business owners: It directly affects sick time and productivity. In other businesses, like doctors’ offices, elimination of viruses and bacteria is a continual battle that is critical to the survival of their practice.
Clients and Disinfection Services
Recently, the owners of a transportation company contacted A&D Cleaning Services with a serious problem. An employee had to undergo treatment for shingles, which is caused by the Herpes Zoster virus. They asked if we could disinfect their offices to minimize the risk of spread of the infection. We sterilized the entire facility, top to bottom, all surfaces, light switches, phones, computers, and floors. Beyond normal cleaning services, the company has asked that we now do a comprehensive disinfection twice annually.
Kids are constantly passing around germs. In a daycare center we service, we disinfect 3 days each week, in addition to normal cleaning. The breakroom and refrigerator offer easy breeding grounds for germs.
Schools may require daily disinfection efforts, including desks and counters, computers and keyboards, toys, learning tools, and bathrooms.
At an orthodontist practice, we sanitize the facility at each cleaning. Examination rooms, patient chairs, and all surfaces—everything but the instruments these professionals use (those are the practice’s responsibility to sterilize).
Health care practices know that one of the best ways to limit the spread of infectious viruses and bacteria is to encourage the constant use of alcohol-based hand cleaners. These sanitizers help maintain an infection-free office especially when used near kitchens, waiting rooms, and other high-traffic areas.
Don’t Forget the Floor
Children play on the floor of medical offices and daycare centers. Other workers may track stray microbes into the building. Standard stripping and waxing of vinyl does not kill germs. To best sanitize floors, janitorial professionals must use bleach-containing cleaners and change mop water frequently.
Open-Designed Offices at Greater Risk for Illness Spread
The new trend towards open office areas (instead of cubicles and closed-door office spaces) may improve productivity but also increases sick time. A study of over 1,800 workers determined that those working in open office spaces were roughly twice as likely to require sick time off than those in conventional office environments. That may also have something to do with lack of privacy, but it is easy to see how desks without partitions can make it easier to spread illnesses.
Wiping up and Wiping out Germs
One of the keys to keeping workers safe is to contract with cleaning services to come in frequently to maintain a sparkling clean workplace. For most office environments, there is little need for expensive sanitizing solutions or intensive sterilization efforts. Most infectious viruses and bacteria are vulnerable to a host of commonly used cleaning agents. The key is to do it carefully (not forgetting the details like air vents, door knobs, and corners) and on a regular, frequent basis
Contact us at A&D Cleaning Services if you are concerned about making sure your offices remain germ-free and a healthy place to work.