Introduction
The environment surrounding the patient is one of the most contributing factors to the prevention or spread of various potential pathogens, including the most recently-discovered COVID-19 virus (WHO, 2020). The lack of appropriate skill in cleaning can result in the contamination of the area and the people in it, including the spread of healthcare-associated infections and drug-resistant micro-organisms. In order to limit the dangers associated with poor cleanliness, staff members must collaborate with infection prevention and control services (IPC) as well as environmental staff (EVS) (WHO, 2020. The reported scholarly activity was an online seminar held on a weekly basis by the World Health Organization (WHO). The title of the seminar was “Standard precautions: Environmental cleaning and disinfection,” and was conducted on the 8th of June, 2020. It is a free and publicly available seminar found on the official WHO online portal.
Problem
As it stands, the understanding of the procedures involved in disease spread prevention is not homogeneous. Gaps of knowledge exist between individual departments and individual nurses, resulting in disproportionate differences in quality, with the lower end of the spectrum threatening to do much damage. According to recent reports, only 50%-70% of nurses engage in frequent handwashing (WHO, 2020. Personal hygiene among patients is low as well. By participating in this scholarly activity, the nurses will learn about the importance of standard precautions in environmental cleaning and disinfection and be motivated to apply the proposed workflow in their everyday practice, in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and related ailments (WHO, 2020.
Solution
The proposed solutions, included in the seminar, are as follows (WHO, 2020:
- Provide descriptions of areas of collaboration between EVS, IPS, and nurses;
- Ensure the understanding of healthcare environments as well as the purposes and objectives of cleaning;
- Identify the differences between routine and cardinal cleaning procedures;
- Describe standard precautions available to the employees and how they work;
- Provide definitions of the most common disinfectants and explain their use;
- Provide the tools for cleanliness monitoring within a healthcare setting.
Opportunity
The seminar offered the opportunity for nurses to improve on their existing knowledge regarding disinfection and cleaning procedures in the hospital, as well as personal protection, in the wake of the COVID-19 disease. The insights provided enables those who attend to fill out the gaps of knowledge and systematize their existing understanding by learning to follow standard procedures. In addition, they were given the opportunity to see the bigger picture and how temporary negligence could lead to much greater problems down the line. COVID-19 is an extremely resilient and contagious disease, thus requiring a much higher standard of hygiene than exhibited by hospitals today. Attending the seminar helps improve those standards.
Program Competencies Addressed
The program addressed the following nursing competencies:
- Leadership: collaboration between different hospital departments (EVS, ESP) requires skilled leadership and the understanding of interprofessional collaboration.
- Professionalism: the seminar sought to improve the professionalism of nurses by providing the scope of their work within a larger context of the COVID-19 endemic. The newfound motivation helped them take their work more seriously.
- Understanding of the healthcare environment: Since the seminar directly addressed the issue of cleanliness and environmental hygiene, it provided valuable knowledge of how areas should be cleaned on a routine and terminal basis. It also taught the attendees how to manage their own personal cleanliness.
Reference
World Health Organization (WHO). (2020). Standard precautions: Environmental cleaning and disinfection.