Importance of hygiene and sanitation in hospitals

By: PSH MEDIA

Hygiene and sanitation takes a totally different level of meaning and implementation when it comes to managing a state-of-the-art private hospital.
Staying true to the old adage “cleanliness is godliness”, a fast-paced environment of a private hospital adapts to a multifaceted approach to achieve successful results and maintain antibacterial sanitation and healthcare hygiene.
Often broken down into three different tiers of approach, leading private hospitals like Pacific Specialist Healthcare (PSH Hospitals) ensure that apart from keeping the hospital environment free of bacteria and germs, the personal hygiene of staff and patients and the proper sterilization of all essentials used for procedures is also maintained at the highest levels expected of a medical facility.
“All three tiers of antibacterial sanitation and hygiene are interrelated and need to be addressed simultaneously in order to maintain an environment suitable for hospital operations at various stages of our daily activities,” PSH Hospitals founder and chief executive officer Parvish Kumar said.
Personal hygiene focuses on individual cleanliness practices like hand washing and bathing, while environmental hygiene encompasses maintaining the cleanliness of surroundings to prevent disease and promote well-being.
Personal Hygiene:
“Personal hygiene involves maintaining the cleanliness of one’s body and clothes, encompassing practices like bathing, hand washing, oral hygiene, and proper disposal of bodily waste,” Mr Kumar added.
He says good personal hygiene is crucial for preventing the spread of infectious diseases, promoting overall health, and maintaining a sense of well-being.
“Regular bathing, thorough hand washing with soap and water, especially before eating and after using the toilet, brushing and flossing teeth regularly, washing clothes and bedding regularly, proper disposal of bodily waste, maintaining clean fingernails and toenails covering coughs and sneezes with a tissue or elbow all form the core of personal hygiene which is absolutely necessary without any compromise in our hospitals,” Mr Kumar said.

“Recent studies have shown that bad oral health hygiene can also lead to many other complications including cardiovascular diseases so one bad hygiene habit can lead to another complication.”
Environmental Hygiene:
“Environmental hygiene focuses on maintaining the cleanliness and safety of the surroundings to prevent the spread of diseases and promote a healthy environment,” Mr Kumar said.
He believes good environmental hygiene is crucial for preventing the spread of infectious diseases, protecting public health, and creating a safe and comfortable environment.
“Proper waste disposal and management, maintaining clean water sources and sanitation facilities, ensuring proper ventilation and air quality, regular cleaning of workplaces, and public spaces, preventing the breeding of disease vectors like mosquitoes, proper food handling and storage practices and maintaining safe and clean areas accessible to patients and staff members form the core activities of environment hygiene.”

Sterilization:

He said the third-tier approach is ensuring that all medical equipment, apparatus and consumables are hygienically clean, sterilized and ready to use at the hospitals operated by PSH Hospitals in Nadi and Suva respectively.

“Sterilization involves eliminating all microorganisms, including bacteria and viruses, to ensure safety and prevent infections during medical procedures. Common methods in hospitals world-wide include steam sterilization (autoclaving), ethylene oxide (EtO) gas, radiation, and vaporized hydrogen peroxide.”

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