Validated healthcare cleaning and sanitizing practices

• US 8,639,527 B2
• Filed: 02/08/2012
• Issued: 01/28/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ecolab USA Incorporated (Ecolab, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Ecolab USA Incorporated (Ecolab, Inc.)
• Inventors: Rensvold, Ryan A., Meek, Ryan D., Raghavapudi, Ravindra
• Primary Examiner(s): O'Connor, Gerald J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TRANG T
• Application Number:
  US13/369,056
• Publication Number:
  US 20120173274A1
• Time in Patent Office: 720 Days
• Field of Search: 705/2, 705/3
• US Class Current: 705/2
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/245 Reminder of hygiene compliance policies, e.g. of washing hands
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/20 for the management or administration of healthcare resources or facilities, e.g. managing hospital staff or surgery rooms

Abstract

A validated healthcare facility cleaning and sanitizing system provides a comprehensive and systematic approach to cleaning and sanitizing practices at a hospital or other healthcare facility. The validated hospital cleaning system identifies hospital vectors of contamination; that is, sources through which hospital acquired infections (HAIs) may be spread. The validated system defines a plurality of modules within a healthcare facility, each having an associated cleaning process map designed to meet the particular cleaning and/or sanitizing needs and challenges faced by that module. Various stages of the cleaning process map include validation points, at which certain parameters designed to ensure proper cleaning and/or sanitizing of the module are verified.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

at least one input device that receives collected data entered by a user, the collected data based on monitored validation points within a plurality of cleaning process maps for a healthcare facility, each of the cleaning process maps corresponding to a different one of a plurality of modules within the healthcare facility and defining housekeeping procedures associated with the corresponding module within the healthcare facility;

a server computer that receives the collected data from the at least one input device;

a database coupled to the server computer that stores the collected data from the healthcare facility in association with hospital data that uniquely identifies the healthcare facility, that stores module data that defines each of the plurality of modules within the healthcare facility, and that stores the plurality of cleaning process maps in association with the corresponding module data;

an analysis application resident on the server computer that analyzes the collected data and generates therefrom validation data indicative of adherence to the housekeeping procedures within the healthcare facility; and

a reporting application resident on the server computer that generates reports that characterize the cleanliness of the healthcare facility based on the collected data, the validation data, the hospital data and the module data;

each cleaning process map further including a storage process and a validation process, the storage process defining storage conditions associated with proper cleaning practices within the corresponding module within the healthcare facility for cleaning products, tools, and textiles, the validation process defining one or more of the validation points indicative of cleanliness of the associated module within the healthcare facility, the validation process further defining a monitoring procedure for each of the one more validation points and identifying corrective action in the event that one or more of the validation points are not satisfied;

the input device further including;

at least one processor

a user interface; and

a validation application that, when executed by the processor, causes one or more screens to be presented on the user interface through which a user may enter the collected data concerning whether the one or more validation points were satisfied, the one or more screens to be presented on the user interface including one or more screens through which a user may enter collected data concerning whether one or more high touch points associated with one of the plurality of modules were cleaned.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the server computer is located remotely from the healthcare facility.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the server computer is local to the healthcare facility.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the validation points comprises a target parameter specifying a desired characteristic for a component of one of the validation processes.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein at least one of the validation points comprises a target parameter specifying a minimum disinfectant concentration.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the analysis application determines.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the analysis application analyzes collected data from a first time period to generate first validation data and collected data from a second time period to generate second validation data.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the reporting application generates a report that compares the first validation data with the second validation data.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the database stores baseline data corresponding to status of the monitored validation points before implementation of the validation processes.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the reporting application generates reports comparing collected data from a current time period with the baseline data.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the reporting application generates reports identifying whether the validation points for each module were satisfied.

12. The system of claim 1 wherein the at least one input device includes one or more of a laptop computer, a personal digital assistant, a mobile device, a mobile phone, a portable media player, an iPod, an iPhone, an iPod touch, or an iPad.

13. The system of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of input devices.

14. The system of claim 1 wherein the validation application further, when executed by the processor, causes one or more screens to be presented on the user interface through which a user may enter data concerning at least one of patient room identification information, module identification information, or unit identification information.

15. The system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of modules within the healthcare facility include at least one of a patient room module, a critical care module, a central sterile processing module, an operating room module, a food service module, a bathroom module, or a laundry room module.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of modules include at least one of a patient skincare module, a wound cleansing module, or a hand hygiene module.