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How is housekeeping related to indoor air quality?

In most buildings, especially those more than two years old, particulates, carbon dioxide and chemical odors are the most common indoor air pollutants. Particulates include tobacco smoke, dust, hair or dander (dead skin cells). Particles from animals and humans float freely on the air currents throughout the building and eventually settle in the form of dust, however, a significant amount of these particulates are inhaled by the occupants of the building.

Similarly, housekeeping chemicals, drugs and pesticides from operations are a great concern in the veterinary practice because of the quantities and frequency with which they are used. And in a medical facility such as a veterinary practice, there are always microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, and fungi floating around in the practice as well!

The solution to most of these problems is to improve housekeeping procedures. While filtering the air through the HVAC system removes some of the particulates, it’s best to minimize or reduce the actual production of the particulates. Prompt clean-up of pet accidents or product spills, regular and thorough cleaning of all areas of the hospital, and an organized, clutter-free work area are the essentials for maintaining healthy indoor air.

Start With A Housekeeping Plan

A regular schedule for cleaning, to include daily, weekly and monthly tasks is essential to keeping a veterinary practice clean and sanitary. The format of a housekeeping plan is not as important as the content; checklists are good but so are narratives. Some people believe that checklists are a waste of time, while others feel that have a written reminder of procedures forces staff members to stick to the plan, especially when things get hectic. The American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) has sample housekeeping forms available (1-800-252-2242.)

A housekeeping plan should include the specific task to be performed, the frequency of the task and the person responsible for completing the task. It's not enough to just have a list of things that need to be cleaned because the practice administrator's definition of clean will likely be different from the kennel attendant's definition.

Many practices have found that relying on the medical staff to perform housekeeping functions doesn't usually produce the same results as having someone who's dedicated job is cleaning. The medical staff will, properly, concentrate on medical tasks and patient care and put off the cleaning tasks like mopping floors and taking out trash until the end of the day. If the day has been "busy," the staff is tired and wants to get finished, so the housekeeping chores usually suffer. Similarly, when a practice is short staffed, the non-routine housekeeping functions don't get accomplished on schedule. In another light, it's usually easier to find and train a person for housekeeping duties than it is to recruit and train someone for medical duties. By having a dedicated housekeeper on staff, the medical staff can concentrate on medicine and nursing, and the level of "detailed" cleanliness in the practice is usually much better.

Reduce The Clutter

It seems we often have more "stuff" than we have places to put our stuff; the result is known as clutter. Although a high "clutter factor" may not in itself be a workplace hazard, it does contribute to other hazards. For instance, having more stuff in a given area will mean it's harder to clean that area properly, so it becomes a great place for dust to accumulate and mold or mildew to grow. This results in an overall increase of the amount of particulates released into the air. Likewise a high "clutter factor" often means that things are stored in places where materials shouldn't be stored. Mechanical rooms, furnace closets, stairways, and walkways are not the best locations to store materials in the first place, so keeping these areas clean and sanitary becomes that much more difficult.

This is a great excuse to get rid of those old computers, outdated drugs, ancient records and no longer used products that are contributing to the clutter problem!

Use Chemicals Wisely

Almost any product that is used inside the building will ultimately release fumes into the air, either as an aerosol spray, a powder or a gas during evaporation. Individually, these product fumes are usually not a big problem, but considering the quantity and variety of products used in the typical veterinary practice on a daily basis, the cumulative effect can be a serious degradation of the air in the facility.

Medications, antiseptics, shampoos, dips, sprays and similar products serve a purpose when we apply them to patients but they also expose the people in the room to the hazards of those products at the same time. The best way to keep those chemicals from evaporating into the air is to use only the amount of the product that is necessary to get the job done, keep supplies covered to prevent evaporation and clean up spills and work areas promptly.

Housekeeping products themselves contribute to the poor indoor air problem when they are used improperly or in excess. Never mix cleaning chemicals. With today's disinfectants and detergent products, it is not necessary nor wise to add other products like bleach to the solution. This does not improve the efficacy of the product, but it may produce by-products that are more hazardous than the original chemicals. Sometimes these by-products are weak gasses that can exacerbate pre-existing health problems in people sensitive to chemicals. Sometimes these by-products are very fine solids that are applied to the surface in the solution, then released into the air as a powder when the surface dries.

Always keep cleaning products in containers with tight lids and avoid the temptation to keep a bucket filled with disinfectant around for pet accidents. Using a mop soaked in disinfectant to clean up liquid does not generally do a good job of inactivating the pathogens that may be present and it increases the amount of the disinfectant that is allowed to evaporate into the air. It's best to clean up pet accidents using paper towels, then cover only the affected area with a disinfectant solution from spray bottles. Only after the area is allowed to air dry is it considered "disinfected" and ready to use.

Since it's often easier to prevent the problem than it is to treat it, a good housekeeping plan, the reduction of clutter, and judicious use of chemicals in the practice are not only smart prevention measures, they're just common sense.

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The information on these pages is excerpted from
The Veterinary Safety & Health Digest,
Copyright 2003 Philip J. Seibert, Jr., CVT  All Rights Reserved
No part of this publication may be reproduced for distribution without prior permission from the publisher.