THE DIRTIEST THING IN YOUR DOCTOR’S OFFICE ISN’T WHAT YOU THINK
Trips to the doctor’s office are a part of life and generally, they are intended to keep us well and in good health. But is your doctor’s office really clean? Aside from all of the coughing and sneezing that goes on in the typical waiting room, there are germs lurking in places you might not have considered.
If you are a physician operating out of a private office or outpatient facility, you likely take cleanliness very seriously. After all, your clientele is coming to you because they are sick. That means that they are inevitably bringing germs and bacteria into your office environment. Even the patient with a broken arm is likely bringing some germs and bacteria into your office.
Having your office professionally cleaned and sanitized on a daily basis can go a long way toward keeping you, your staff, and your patients safe but maintaining a clean doctor’s office requires continued vigilance and maintenance.
Once the cleaning crew finishes their work and a new day begins, patients and staff are busy – if inadvertently – spreading germs and bacteria throughout your office. This is inevitable and it is your responsibility to mitigate the spread of germs during office hours.
One of the keys to stopping the spread of germs is the cleaning and disinfecting of high-touch surfaces. In today’s blog post we are going to reveal some of the germiest surfaces in your office. Some of them may surprise you.
Recent research conducted by InsuranceQuotes.com ranked four of the ‘germiest’ surfaces in a typical doctor’s office setting. These are just some of the areas that should be regularly cleaned and disinfected throughout the day.
DOOR HANDLES
Not surprisingly, door handles made the list of the geekiest surfaces in a doctor’s office. Door handles, whether on the main entrance, the restroom, or other internal spaces are one of the most touched surfaces in any facility. The fact that many of the people touching door handles in a medical setting are already sick makes doctor office door handles a bit more ominous.
What may be surprising to many is that door handles were ranked as the fourth ‘germiest’ surfaces in the typical doctor’s office setting. Despite this relatively low ranking on the list, door handles should be cleaned and disinfected regularly throughout the day.
WAITING ROOM CHAIR ARMREST
The armrests of chairs in a doctor’s office are the third most germ-ridden surfaces, harboring more bacteria than the typical toilet seat. Again, the typical patient population has a high percentage of people who are already ill. They have a much greater potential for spreading germs and bacteria than a healthy individual. Regardless, every individual that uses an armrest will leave something behind.
Cleaning and sanitizing waiting room chair armrests after every use can go a long way toward stopping the spread of germs in your medical office.
THE DOCTOR’S KEYBOARD
Coming in at number two on the list is the doctor’s keyboard. This is a bit surprising when you consider that in general, doctors are more hygienically conscious than the average individual. Still, the doctor’s keyboard is often used by other staff besides the doctor, and keyboards are often neglected during routine cleaning.
It is important to not overlook the keyboard when cleaning and disinfecting your office. Doctors should also consider keeping hand sanitizers at the desk so that hands can be sanitized prior to and after using the computer keyboard.
AND THE NUMBER ONE ‘GERMIEST’ SURFACE IN YOUR DOCTOR’S OFFICE IS …
Believe it or not, the surface that was found to harbor the most germs in this particular study was the clipboard pen. When we think about it, this makes perfect sense. Virtually every patient that enters the office touches the clipboard pen when signing in. According to the study the average clipboard pen has over 46,000 times more germs than an average toilet seat!
Clipboard pens should be wiped down thoroughly with disinfecting wipes after every use to help avoid the spread of germs. Providing hand sanitizers at the reception desk is also a good idea.
BONUS TIP FOR THE TIE-WEARING PHYSICIAN
Earlier studies have shown that a doctor’s tie ranks among the most germ-ridden surfaces in the doctor’s office. You might want to make additional trips to the dry cleaners.
WANT MORE TIPS FOR MAINTAINING A GERM-FREE MEDICAL FACILITY?
Call or contact Complete Care Maintenance for a free consultation. We can help you to identify areas for improvement in your current cleaning and disinfecting procedures.
