Emerging Pathogens and Environmental Cleaning

Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) pose a challenge to institutions in terms of being prepared for how to clean and disinfect the healthcare setting when a patient has a known or suspected infection with an emergent pathogen. While existing guidance may not necessarily be keeping up with these EIDs, infection preventionists and environmental services professionals should be able to cope by breaking down the etiology of the pathogen in question, consulting what is known in recommendations and the medical literature, and proceeding accordingly.

A new report from ICT examines surface cleaning and disinfection in the face of emerging infectious disease and the pathogens that can challenge disinfectant efficacy. It reviews the hierarchy of pathogen resistance and susceptibility to disinfectants, discusses various factors that impact disinfectant efficacy, and addresses current pathogens of concern.

Key points are:

• Microbial susceptibility of pathogens to disinfectants may vary depending on a number of key factors.
• Surface disinfectants must be effective against the targeted pathogens and high-touch surfaces must be effectively cleaned.
• The properties of an ideal disinfectant include being broad-spectrum, fast-acting and persistent.

For details see ICT.

Posted by Tim Sandle