Ecolab Inc. (NYSE: ECL) today announced the launch of its new EnCompass™ Environmental Hygiene program, a comprehensive clinical program that helps hospitals improve patient room hygiene and prevent the spread of infections. The program includes cleaning tools, products, dispensing equipment, auditing processes and cleanliness monitoring to help hospitals clean patient rooms more quickly, consistently and effectively.

“Healthcare organizations recognize the important role that proper cleaning plays in infection prevention, yet research has found that on average fewer than half of the high-touch surfaces are cleaned in patient rooms in most hospitals1,” said Paul B. Chaffin, vice president of Ecolab Healthcare North America. “Ecolab developed EnCompass to help healthcare providers improve hygiene and reduce the environmental transmission of pathogens that cause infections.”

Clinical research has shown that patients admitted to rooms previously occupied by individuals infected with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) or vancomycin-resistant enterococcus (VRE) are at greater risk of acquiring these pathogens, most likely from environmental surfaces contaminated by the previous patients2,3,4. With the EnCompass program, Ecolab Healthcare offers hospitals a way to reduce those risks, including:

  • Cleanliness Auditing and Reporting – Ecolab works with hospital representatives to evaluate whether the housekeeping staff are cleaning and disinfecting rooms properly by using a fluorescent gel testing solution that glows under black light, though not readily visible to the naked eye. This allows auditors to see which surfaces have been cleaned and help better train the housekeeping staff.
  • Accurate Dispensing, Effective Chemistry and Efficient Tools – The EnCompass system helps ensure that appropriate levels of disinfectant are delivered to critical surfaces. The system uses color-coordinated microfiber cloths and mops with ergonomic modular cleaning stations, which help separate clean and dirty items to minimize cross contamination. EnCompass cleaning products provide clinically-tested concentrated disinfectants, ready-to-use cleaning solutions, wipes, hard surface cleaners and odor counteractants.

“Proper cleaning is critically important in preventing the spread of pathogens, placing environmental services on the frontline of defense in infection control,” said Phillip C. Carling, MD, director of infectious diseases and epidemiology at Caritas Carney Hospital in Boston, a professor at Boston University School of Medicine and an advisor to Ecolab Healthcare. “The right tools, education and a systematic approach to cleaning are proven to reduce environmental contamination which helps prevent infections5.”

About Ecolab

With sales of $6 billion and more than 26,000 associates, Ecolab Inc. (NYSE: ECL) is the global leader in cleaning, sanitizing, food safety and infection prevention products and services. Ecolab delivers comprehensive programs and services to foodservice, food and beverage processing, healthcare, and hospitality markets in more than 160 countries. More news and information is available at www.ecolab.com.

1 Carling P, Parry MF, Von Beheren SM. Identifying Opportunities to Enhance Environmental Cleaning in 23 Acute Care Hospitals. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. 2008 Jan;29(1):1-7;18171180.

2 Huang SS, Datta R, Platt R. Risk of acquiring antibiotic-resistant bacteria from prior room occupants. Arch Int Med. 2006 Oct 9;166(18):1945-51.

3 Drees M, Snydman DR, Schmid CH et al. Prior environmental contamination increases the risk of acquisition of vancomycin-resistant enterococci. Clin Infect Dis. 2008 Mar 1;46(5):678-85.

4 Hardy KJ, Oppenheim BA, Gossain S et al. A study of the relationship between environmental contamination with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and patients’ acquisition of MRSA. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. 2006 Feb;27(2):127-32.

5 Carling PC, Briggs JL, Perkins J, Highlander D. Improved cleaning of patient rooms using a new targeting method. Clin Infect Dis. 2006 Feb 1;42(3):385-8.

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