Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 27, 2026

Safety Precautions and Operating Procedures in an ABSL-4 Laboratory: 2. General Practices
08:53

Safety Precautions and Operating Procedures in an ABSL-4 Laboratory: 2. General Practices

Published on: October 3, 2016

19.0K

Simplifying Disinfectant Choices to Improve Safety in Contact Precaution Rooms

Daniel Goldish1, Stephanie Hendrick1, Max Hurwitz1

  • 1Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA.

American Journal of Infection Control
|March 20, 2019
PubMed

Insights

Bleach-based cleaners effectively reduce hospital infections like MRSA and VRE, and are superior for controlling C. difficile. Eliminating product choice simplifies disinfection, potentially reducing C. difficile transmission.

Area of Science:

  • Infectious Diseases
  • Hospital Epidemiology
  • Infection Control

Background:

  • Quaternary ammonium and bleach-based disinfectants are used for hospital infection control.
  • Both are effective against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE).
  • Bleach-based products show superior efficacy in controlling Clostridium difficile infections.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the impact of simplifying disinfectant selection on C. difficile transmission.
  • To assess the potential of a standardized disinfection approach in acute care settings.

Main Methods:

  • Pilot study in an acute care hospital setting.
  • Focused on eliminating the need for providers to select appropriate disinfectants from isolation carts.
  • Compared the efficacy of different disinfectant types in controlling specific pathogens.

Main Results:

  • Bleach-based cleaning products demonstrated better control of C. difficile infections compared to quaternary ammonium products.
  • The pilot study suggests that simplifying the cleaning product selection process has potential benefits.
  • Reducing choices may streamline disinfection protocols and improve adherence.

Conclusions:

  • Standardizing disinfectant use by eliminating provider choice can simplify infection control practices.
  • This approach shows potential for reducing C. difficile transmission in hospitals.
  • Further research is warranted to confirm these findings in larger healthcare settings.
Keywords:
BleachHealth care–associated infectionsIsolation cartPrecautionsQuality improvement

More Related Videos

Safety Precautions and Operating Procedures in an ABSL-4 Laboratory: 3. Aerobiology11:13

Safety Precautions and Operating Procedures in an ABSL-4 Laboratory: 3. Aerobiology

Published on: October 3, 2016

15.1K
Safety Precautions and Operating Procedures in an ABSL-4 Laboratory: 4. Medical Imaging Procedures09:36

Safety Precautions and Operating Procedures in an ABSL-4 Laboratory: 4. Medical Imaging Procedures

Published on: October 3, 2016

11.5K

Related Concept Videos

Transmission-based Precautions I: Contact, Enteric, and Droplets01:17

Transmission-based Precautions I: Contact, Enteric, and Droplets

Transmission-based precautions are for patients known to be infected or suspected to be infected or colonized with organisms that pose a significant risk to others. Some transmission-based precautions include contact, enteric, and droplet.
Contact Precautions:
Contact precautions are the measures taken to prevent the transmission of infectious agents, especially epidemiologically important microorganisms such as MRSA or influenza, primarily transmitted through direct or indirect contact with an...
4.6K
Standard Precaution01:26

Standard Precaution

Standard precautions are the minimum infection control safeguards used while caring for all patients, irrespective of their disease condition. They help prevent the spread of common infectious microorganisms to healthcare workers, patients, and visitors in all healthcare settings.
Hand hygiene is the most crucial means to prevent the transmission of disease. Employers are legally required to provide their workers with personal protective equipment (PPE) to minimize exposure or contact with...
2.9K
Cleaning, Sterilization, and Disinfection01:30

Cleaning, Sterilization, and Disinfection

Cleaning, disinfection, and sterilization are the methods that help to break the infection chain and prevent disease.
Cleaning
The cleaning process usually involves using water with detergents or enzymatic cleaner and removing foreign material from objects and surfaces, including organic material such as body fluids or inorganic material like soil. Cleaning is performed before high-level disinfection and sterilization because foreign materials on the cover of the devices interfere with process...
10.2K
Survey Safety01:28

Survey Safety

Surveying near highways, rough terrain, or power lines involves significant risks. Working along highways is particularly dangerous and requires the use of warning signs and flagmen. It is safest to avoid working directly on roads and use offsets whenever possible. When highway work is unavoidable, it must follow all safety guidelines. Surveyors should wear bright clothing, such as orange reflective vests, to ensure visibility to motorists, coworkers, and hunters. In construction zones, wearing...
379
Contact-dependent Signaling01:19

Contact-dependent Signaling

Contact-dependent signaling, as the name suggests, requires that communicating cells be in direct contact with each other. This is achieved either through receptor-ligand interactions or by specialized cytoplasmic channels that allow the flow of small molecules between cells. In animal cells, channels called gap junctions facilitate contact-dependent signaling in certain tissues, whereas, plasmodesmata perform a similar function in plants.
Gap Junctions
In animal cells, gap junctions are formed...
46.9K
Mate Choice01:20

Mate Choice

Mate choice—the decision about whom to mate with—is a type of natural selection, since animals must reproduce to pass down their genes. Mate choice is also called intersexual selection because the behavior occurs between the sexes.
11.7K