Throughout an infectious disease pandemic, businesses faced heightened challenges in keeping their businesses open and operating and their employees and customers safe. One positive impact of the global pandemic is the awareness and focus on proper workplace cleaning and disinfection practices. A good disinfection process should be a core part of your janitorial and commercial cleaning processes every day.
Consider these three foundational elements for commercial cleaning and janitorial service operations when disinfecting your workplace:
Planning, Process, and Procedures: To properly execute a program, you start with a plan, define the process, and create detailed procedures. Every plan begins with a thorough facility evaluation. During the assessment, identify, map, and consider all activities and requirements for each space, specifically noting surface types (hard surfaces, floors, fabrics, etc.), and activities (food prep, foot traffic, etc.). Be sure to document anything requiring specific processes or leading to a higher risk of contamination or the spread of germs, bacteria, or dirt. Your plan should then spell out the procedures and processes in detail. Every procedure should identify how to execute a cleaning or disinfection task, and when it should take place (i.e., hourly, daily, weekly, or urgent response).
Products: There are many products used in commercial cleaning and janitorial services operations to disinfect your workplace. Products are often designed for specific tasks or types of surfaces. You should ensure that every product you purchase is approved by the EPA and designed for the intended job. Be sure to read all instructions and precautions to understand if you need to wear PPE and if the product requires precleaning before application or if specific contact times are required to ensure the product works properly.
People: Implementing the right processes, procedures, and products is essential, but success boils down to properly training and supporting the people who will be disinfecting. The right team will make or break your efforts to achieve your disinfection program goals.
If you have a large space with a variety of surfaces and multiple uses, your best option might be to seek support from a professional. You’ll want to find an experienced and proven expert that covers all CDC recommendations, uses EPA-registered chemicals, and follows best practices in managing, training, and supporting their staff. Marsden’s disinfection services can help you design a program that meets your needs and helps to keep your facility safe.