We all enjoyed Infection Prevention 2017 — and hope that you did too! Here’s a few scientific updates relating to our product range that were presented at the conference, published in the Journal of Infection Prevention:

• Abstracts 90 and 106. Gateshead NHS Trust collaborated with GAMA to deliver a back-to-basics cleaning education campaign. The campaign consisted of 28 face-to-face training sessions supported by various electronic resources. Whilst it can be tricky to measure the impact of this sort of campaign, questionnaires issued before and after the campaign reported an increase in awareness of correct cleaning techniques. The details of a new app-based method for gathering information on the effectiveness of the training is described in Abstract 106, detailing the new AskMe app from GAMA.
• Abstract 102. Luton and Dunstable University Hospital NHS Trust trialled the Commode Audit App from GAMA to replace a paper-based audit of commode disinfection to ‘go paper free and save a tree’! The audit proved to be time-saving and eased the burden or report-writing, so has been adopted by the Trust.
• Abstract 28. Joining up the dots to improve surface hygiene by use of fluorescent markers. This pilot study in Derby identified the key local touch points to monitor in order to configure a surface disinfection improvement programme based on fluorescent markers.
• Abstracts #86 and #87. Taiwanese researchers compared standard disinfection approaches using chlorine solution to Clinell wipes for tackling contamination with VRE and difficile. High levels of contamination were identified both before and after disinfection using chlorine solution: 20% of sites remained contaminated with C. difficile and 40% with VRE after chlorine disinfection. In contrast Clinell Universal Wipes virtually eradicated VRE and Clinell Sporicidal Wipes virtually eradicated C. difficile (with only 3% of sites remaining contaminated after disinfection for both). Whilst it is not clear whether it was the improved disinfection process using wipes, or the differences in the chemicals used, the result is that the wipes delivered considerably improved disinfection compared with chlorine solution (combined with improved staff safety)!
• Abstract #60. Emergency Department patient trolleys: A service evaluation. This qualitative study from Scottish researchers evaluated staff perceptions on the contamination risk from trolleys in the ED. Staff agreed that the trolleys are difficult to clean, and often remained contaminated following standard approaches. At IPS, GAMA launched a trolley cover, which is designed to be single patient use and reduce the risk from trolley contamination.
• Abstract 96. The imaginatively titled ‘It takes two to tango’ by GAMA’s clinical director Martin Kiernan describes the importance of ensuring compatibility between hospital disinfectants and hospital surface materials. The review identified an evidence-free zone, concluding that more work is needed to ensure that disinfection and material compatibility are optimised during hospital surface disinfection.

Please feel free to contact us if you’d like any more information about these updates.