you've properly cleaned for the removal of contamination. This is critical
in the healthcare environment which attends to those already unwell —
and potentially most vulnerable to infection."
Dangerous floors
While it makes sense to focus on the obvious dangers of high-touch
surfaces, there are other threats that also require your attention. The
impact of floor contamination is one of those topics that can literally
be overlooked in terms of importance for providing a safe space for
perioperative patients.
"Items dropped on floors can easily transmit microbes from the
floor to the person picking them up," says Mr. Hughes, "and patients
7 0 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 8
Advantages Disadvantages
Convenient Not specific for contamination
Lower-cost Some disinfectant residues can interfere with the
reaction, producing unreliable results
Instant results Variability in RLU scores between ATP systems
Pros & Cons of ATP
Bioluminescence Detection
Advantages Disadvantages
Detects and quantifies contamination More expensive
Can be qualitative, semi-quantitative
or quantitative
Not instantaneous
(typically requires 48 hours)
Can identify important pathogens Requires a microbiology lab
with basic equipment
Pros & Cons of Microbial Swabbing
