“Bringing Healthcare’s Cross-Contamination Prevention Techniques into your home”
A realtor recently asked me if I could accommodate her homes routine cleanings into my schedule. Hesitant only because my schedule was already so heavy, she proceeded to tell me how she just let her longtime housekeeper go, after witnessing her grab a sponge from her cleaning caddy that had been sitting in a cup with a toilet brush, and begin wiping down her kitchen countertops with it.
Though cringing and gagging over her story, they stamped in my agenda, a motivation for sharing my adapted infection control techniques with others to put into use in their own homes.
Cut the chemicals; tone your technique.
I use a Euro method that began to spread to America in the early 90’s, first adapted by a company called AquaStar and now called StarFiber. Many hospitals in Europe use these products and methods in their housekeeping departments, my team and I use them in our clients home and now you can too.
Starfiber designs their microfiber cloths and mop heads not only to trap dust/dirt/allergens and hold them but to cut down grease & grime using only water and still disinfecting. They take it a step further color co-ordinating to prevent cross-contamination.
Blue glass (daddy’s car window)
Green Kitchen (veggie room)
Yellow Bathroom (pee pee room)
.
This universal association helps mentally associate which cloth gets used where, preventing the spread of micro-organisms & pathogens, unique to each area, and spreading them elsewhere. I have used this system with great success and have even color coded my gloves and sponges too. My team and I have created a “strategy” when cleaning, which follows suite with this same methodology. Cleaning in steps: cleanest to dirtiest.
For ex: Bathroom> dust light fixture, shine mirror, clean sink/vanity, scrub tub/shower, THEN scrub the toilet. Again when cleaning the toilet> clean back/handle first, then lids, base, then bowl. Then dispose of rag to wash, remove gloves, sanitize hands. Now your ready to clean the next area. Seems tedious but its fast & effective.
Soak cleaning sponges in vinegar/lemon mixture for 10-20 min before wringing out and storing. Use cellulose sponges to quicken drying time, thus harboring less bacteria. Wipe gloves with alcohol after use.
Know the “High Touch” Places in your home & disinfect them regularly: door knobs/handles, keyboards/remotes/phones/alarms, light switch plates, microwave/dishwasher buttons. Cutting boards need disinfecting regularly as well. To successfully disinfect an item it needs 10-20 min “contact time”, time in contact with disinfectant. Spraying “high touch” places down while dusting, them wiping them off while vac’ing takes no added time and guarantee’s they are aseptic.
Alcohol-vinegar-lemon are natural agents that have huge anti-microbial & anti-bacterial properties.
Please feel free to ask question; inquire for tips. I’m happy to spread the info and help you get clean going GREEN.
Her House 