Electrostatic technology helps Rochester Regional cut infections

Rochester Regional Health has boosted its infection control efforts in an effort to bring technology to bear on rising flu activity.

Since October, there have been 33 million cases of flu in the United States, and as many as 41,500 related deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

That’s why Rochester Regional contracted to use the Clorox Total 360 disinfecting and sanitizing products as well as a spraying system that uses electrostatic technology to disinfect a variety of environments in the facility. The five-hospital delivery system serves the greater Rochester, N.Y., metropolitan area.



According to Commercial Cleaning Corp., a janitorial and maintenance services firm, electrostatic spray surface cleaning is the process of spraying an electrostatically charged mist onto surfaces and objects. Electrostatic spray uses a specialized solution that is combined with air and atomized by an electrode inside the sprayer. The spray contains positively charged particles that adhere to surfaces and objects. Because the particles in the spray are positively charged, they cling to and coat any surface they’re aimed at.

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Now, Rochester Regional can disinfect surfaces with treatments of as many as 18,000 square feet per hour.

“With the recent flu outbreak in our community, we knew we needed to boost our protocols to ensure our facilities could maintain the standard of care we put forth throughout the rest of the year,” says Melissa Bronstein, director of infection prevention and control. Investing in the new system serves as a useful adjunct to our standards for providing a clean environment for patients.”

The system is used daily to provide protection in all patient isolation rooms, as well as the emergency department, operating rooms and high-traffic areas, such as waiting areas, elevators, staff offices, public restrooms, wheelchairs and gurneys.

The daily cleaning regimen starts at 4 a.m. and every inch of a facility is covered by the end of the day, says Liz Follaco, operations manager of environmental services. “Since the inception of the system, our staff feels empowered knowing they’re going the extra mile to properly disinfect the hospital and safeguard our patients’ environments.”