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Cleaning to prevent the spread of germs

Disinfection procedures

Germs from a person may be found on any object the person touched or on equipment that was used during the person's care. Some germs can live many weeks on a dry surface.

Germs on any surface can pass to you or another person. Cleaning helps prevent the spread of germs.

Your workplace has policies about how to clean:

• Patient rooms
• Spills or contamination
• Supplies and equipment that are reusable

Cleaning a Patient's Room

Start by wearing the right personal protective equipment (PPE). Your workplace has a policy or guidelines on what to wear. These policies may differ depending on where in the hospital you are cleaning and the type of illness a patient may have had. PPE includes gloves and, when needed, a gown, shoe covers, and a mask or respirator. Always wash your hands before putting gloves on and after taking gloves off.

When you remove bed sheets and towels:

• Hold them away from your body and do not shake them.
• Watch for needles and other sharps.
• Do not put the sheets and towels down on another surface in the room. Place them in the correct container.
• Items that are wet or moist should go into a container that will not leak.

Clean the bed rails, furniture, telephone, call light, door knobs, light switches, bathroom, and all other objects and surfaces in the room. Also clean the floor, including under the furniture. Use the disinfectant or cleaning solution your workplace provides for these purposes.

Carefully put any sharps or needles in the sharps container.

When you clean the floors, change the cleaning liquid every hour. Use a fresh mop every day.

Cleaning Spills After Contamination

If your workplace does not have a spill response team for cleaning up blood or other bodily fluids, you will need these supplies to clean up spills:

• Paper towels.
• Diluted bleach solution (be sure you know how to make this solution).
• Biohazard bag.
• Rubber gloves.
• Forceps to pick up sharps or broken glass. Never use your hands, even though you will be wearing gloves.

Make sure you are wearing the correct gloves, gown, mask (or respirator), or shoe coverings for the kind of spill you are cleaning up.

Before you start cleaning, mark the area of the spill with tape or barriers so that no one enters the area or slips. Then:

• Cover the spill with paper towels.
• Spray the towels with the bleach solution and wait for 20 minutes.
• Pick up the towels and put them in the biohazard bag.
• Carefully put broken glass or sharps in a sharps container.
• Use fresh paper towels to wipe the area with the bleach solution. Put them in the biohazard bag when done.
• Throw your gloves, gown, and shoe covers into the biohazard bag.
• Thoroughly wash your hands.

When cleaning up large blood spills, use an approved solution to kill any viruses such as hepatitis.

Always wash your hands after you take off your gloves.

References

Calfee DP. Prevention and control of health care-associated infections. In: Goldman L, Cooney KA, eds. Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 27th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2024:chap 261.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. Disinfection and sterilization. www.cdc.gov/infectioncontrol/guidelines/disinfection/index.html. Updated May 24, 2019. Accessed October 25, 2023.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. Germs live in the environment. www.cdc.gov/infectioncontrol/projectfirstline/healthcare/germs-environment.html. Updated March 11, 2022. Accessed October 29, 2023.

Rutala WA, Weber DJ. Disinfection and Sterilization in health care facilities: an overview and current Issues. Infect Dis Clin North Am. 2016;30(3):609-637. PMID: 27515140 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27515140/.

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Review Date: 10/13/2023  

Reviewed By: Linda J. Vorvick, MD, Clinical Professor, Department of Family Medicine, UW Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.

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