Special Edition on Operating Room Imperatives Special Edition- Operating Room Imperatives | Page 21

Setting: 576-bed hospital | 27 ORs | 23,000 surgeries per year
Benefits Hospital Challenges Solutions Metric
Clinical High-touch objects cleaned
just 20% of time for
between-case cleaning Standardized the cleaning process across OR teams to
address cleaning thoroughness and efficiency concerns High-touch object cleaning improved
66%
Operational Poor communication, low
job morale and high staff
turnover among OR aides Environmental Monitoring tools for real-time and direct
environmental hygiene monitoring and thoroughness of
cleaning reporting Staff retention increased to 86%-
100%, and absenteeism decreased
No method for determining
thoroughness of cleaning OR turnover time decreased by an
Surgical room turnover kits with disposable linens, microfiber average of 21 minutes
cloths and mops to increase room turnover efficiency and
cleaning effectiveness
Point-of-use cleaning carts and tools to streamline the
cleaning process and ensure compliance with best practices
Financial
Between-case process and
turnover times inconsistent
and high cost
On-site best practices training on between-case and terminal Achieved $800 cost savings/room
cleaning for all staff
Facility potential savings per 1,000
savings per procedures of
$800,000 + 167 hours
Part of any continuous improvement process includes
collecting and sharing data on metrics for success. In the case of
improving between-case cleaning and disinfection, these metrics
are turnover time and thoroughness of cleaning. Environmental
monitoring programs that provide customizable, easy-to-read
dashboards are helpful because they collate data points in
one place, providing visibility to all stakeholders whenever
they need it. However, not all dashboards are created equally,
so it’s important to find one that meets your specific needs.
For OR between-case cleaning, it can be especially helpful to
be able to measure compliance and pinpoint precisely where
corrective action is needed, down to a department, team or
individual level. These actionable insights allow department
managers, clinicians, EVS staff and other authorized users to
lead process improvements where and when they are needed
most to standardize workflows and keep patients safe.
To summarize, successful surgical procedures are the highest
priority in the surgical services department but taking a closer
look at OR between-case cleaning can provide hospitals with
additional value. There are clinical, operational and financial
benefits to improving the efficacy and efficiency of between-case
cleaning and disinfection that your hospital can begin to
realize today.
Here are five ways to improve your OR between-case
cleaning:
— Define roles and responsibilities clearly
— Have efficient and effective between-case cleaning and
disinfection supplies available
— Train on best practices for cleaning and disinfecting
an operating room
— Objectively monitor the thoroughness of cleaning
— Have access to actionable data on thoroughness of
cleaning and room turnover time
— Share data with staff to drive continuous
improvement 
Linda Homan, RN, BSN, CIC, is senior manager of clinical
affairs for Ecolab Healthcare.
References:
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9. Ecolab data on file.
10. Ecolab data on file.
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12. Centers for Disease Prevention and Control, Options for Evaluating
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