Comments

Dr. Powitz (1:30pm MT on 1/16/24)

• Cleaning for Health is too open-ended. Do we have to clean and disinfect every surface? We went a bit overboard during the Covid pandemic (after all, nobody licks a ceiling).
• What surfaces in what areas do we Clean for Health? Are carpeting and furnishings included? If they are, how do we manage that?
• How do we define Cleaning for Health? Are surfaces, ventilation, traffic patterns included? Do we reduce the bioburden to its lowest level before lethal treatment is applied, or do we rely on disinfectant?
• How clean do we have to get a surface to ensure that there aren’t any transmissible pathogens? Can we get by with a “germicide”? What do we consider a “safe” microbial level?
• And finally, how do we verify Cleaning for Health, or validate the cleaning process?
• Cleaning for Health (fomites) has four priorities:
o Priority 1: Removal of pathogens, lowest possible level of other microorganisms.
o Priority 2: Reduction of microbial numbers to levels considered “safe”.
o Priority 3-4: Aesthetic cleanliness that includes no microbial growth, and one level lower: no odor.