T
he first time we trialed whole-room disinfection technology,
our hospital was facing a Clostridium difficile outbreak that
had caused 3 patient deaths in a month. When heightened
precautions failed to decrease the infection rate, our director
of epidemiology got in touch with a manufacturer who was planning
the U.S. launch of a device that claimed to sterilize rooms with hydro-
gen peroxide vapor. That was more than a decade ago, when there
were few automated surface disinfection systems on the market. The
J U L Y 2 0 1 6 • O U T PA T I E N TS U R G E R Y. N E T • 9 7
• SEE THE LIGHT Ultraviolet-C energy kills microbes on the surfaces it illuminates, but multiple cycles might be required to completely illuminate all surfaces.
The Whole Truth
About Whole-Room Disinfection
Automated antimicrobial devices reach the corners and crevices
that sprays and wipes sometimes miss.
Nancy
L.
Havill,
MT(ASCP),
MHA,
CIC
Nancy L. Havill, MT(ASCP), MHA, CIC | New Haven, Conn.
