[John-paul]

Reflection question: Effective cleaning and disinfection practices reduce the risk of transmission of infections to health care workers and patients. What can you do at your workplace to support effective cleaning and disinfection?

[Mahnoz]

In the community setting I find myself disinfecting the nursing area with the provided wipes such as Lysol at the beginning of my shift and at the end. The one thing I will have to remember to do is to disinfect the high touch surfaces of my work environment such as the patients equipment in use, bedrails and surrounding environment. I assume the previous nurse has already done so in disinfecting everything before leaving but since there are no written directions in doing so it is not right for me to just assume. I will have to advocate to have more reminders implemented such as wiping surfaces as you go or before sitting down to document. This can contribute to a culture of safety thus reducing the risk of harm to the patient and staff members.

[Esha]

Hello Mahnoz,

I always tend to wipe down my surfaces as well before sitting down and also at the end of my shift. I feel like high-touch surfaces can never really be clean enough. Sometimes environmental surfaces will be cleaned and a staff member will be touching the surface before it even dries. I believe this is why each healthcare member should be responsible for disinfecting the equipment they utilize. I believe this would also vastly decrease common illnesses during flu season amongst staff as well.

[Esha]

To support effective cleaning and disinfection practices at my workplace I can adhere to the rules and policies and ensure I perform my part in cleaning. Before the beginning of my shift, I ensure to disinfect my WOW before setting up for the shift. This way, if the step had been missed by a previous staff member I can ensure to perform the task. I always ensure to clean equipment before utilizing it with other clients. I noticed that a lot of staff members forget to clean equipment in between use of patients which often goes unnoticed. At the end of my shift, I try my best to wipe down all the machines, however, that does not always end up happening due to the busyness of the unit.

[Mauei Caela]

Hi Esha, I can relate that we cannot always wipe down all the machines at the end of the shift, as we get really busy most of the time. I used to beat myself up with this because I feel bad that I could be spreading germs or giving extra work to the nurse coming in after me. In a perfect scenario, this will be a very good routine to have. I am glad you mentioned the part that if the previous staff member may have missed a step, you can be sure that you covered that part as you input it in your routine. This shows that it may be big or small, but healthcare is a team environment, and we all try to do our part the best that we can.

[Mauei Caela]

Since I have entered the hospital settings during the pandemic time, I have noticed how my fellow nurses always disinfect their stations (i.e., medwows, stethoscopes, phones, pens, watches, ID badges, etc.) before and after their shifts. I like to clean as I go, so that I can leave the disinfecting wipes at the end when all the clutter is gone. Since I work in a place where there are multiple wires from the ventilator machine, vital sign machine, emergency ambubags that are connected to oxygen in the wall, trach cart, and other patients’ items, it can be crowded and high risk for injury, especially to the staff, in each of the patient’s room. Items like the thermometer plastic cover can be invisible on the floor when not picked up right away, and may cause a slip/fall to staff who walk in the room. Being an advocate about this is a very important part of the job, as it also reduces risks for potential work-related injury.

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