Separating dirty and clean: Dirty in, clean out
Every day in the hospital or care home environment there is a constant flow of dirty goods going in and (hopefully) clean goods going out of the sluice room. A well-planned and adequately stocked sluice room is a paragon of hygiene and will afford the premises freedom from cross infections.
In order to fulfil the second part of the above ‘dirty in, clean out’ it is imperative that every sluice room is planned to enable the first part of the above ‘separating dirty and clean’. This means having the temporary holding area of soiled bedpans etc. far away from the hospital sluice room equipment used to clean them. In addition all supplies, such as macerator disinfectant and chemicals should be stored in the clean storage area, well away from any dirty goods. The same rules that apply in the sluice room should, of course, be applied to the laundry room, should laundry be processed on site.
Every sluice room should be fitted with a well-designed sink with a drainer and automatic taps are important to avoid being another point of contact with hands that may have had contact with soiled goods, and therefore potentially infectious material.
The flusher or disinfector used to clean reusable items in the sluice room should always be checked prior to using, ensuring that there is enough of the cleaning agent in the equipment to complete the cycle with optimum efficiency.
Finally, it is not enough to ensure that clean and dirty areas in the sluice room are kept separated, it is vital that there is crystal clear signage in the room to make any staff member 100% certain which part of the room is clean and which allows for the placement of dirty items – albeit obviously stored properly.
In order to fulfil the second part of the above ‘dirty in, clean out’ it is imperative that every sluice room is planned to enable the first part of the above ‘separating dirty and clean’. This means having the temporary holding area of soiled bedpans etc. far away from the hospital sluice room equipment used to clean them. In addition all supplies, such as macerator disinfectant and chemicals should be stored in the clean storage area, well away from any dirty goods. The same rules that apply in the sluice room should, of course, be applied to the laundry room, should laundry be processed on site.
Every sluice room should be fitted with a well-designed sink with a drainer and automatic taps are important to avoid being another point of contact with hands that may have had contact with soiled goods, and therefore potentially infectious material.
The flusher or disinfector used to clean reusable items in the sluice room should always be checked prior to using, ensuring that there is enough of the cleaning agent in the equipment to complete the cycle with optimum efficiency.
Finally, it is not enough to ensure that clean and dirty areas in the sluice room are kept separated, it is vital that there is crystal clear signage in the room to make any staff member 100% certain which part of the room is clean and which allows for the placement of dirty items – albeit obviously stored properly.