Revolutionizing Hospital Cleaning with Automation

Hospital cleaning is crucial for maintaining a safe, sterile environment where patients and healthcare providers can thrive. No other type of facility poses such a heightened risk of contracting healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). As the World Health Organization points out, doctors and nurses are at the highest risk of contracting an infection while treating and tending to patients. Likewise, a 2022 study by Infection Control Today at a hospital found two of the most dangerous pathogens that commonly cause HAIs were frequently found on hospital floors.

But keeping up with all the cleaning tasks is challenging as hospital EVS staff and BSCs have to balance increased workload with cleaning responsibilities. Factor in persisting labor shortages, and the challenges mount exponentially. That’s why hospitals need to embrace the revolution occurring with automation for hospital cleaning equipment. Cleaning machines and robotics transform the hospital cleaning processes—lifting them from laborious to liberating.

The burden of rising workload

Finding EVS staff cleaners and BSC staff was a challenge before the pandemic. Now, widespread and persistent labor shortages have led to cleaning staff doing more tasks with fewer team members at increasingly busy healthcare facilities. The pandemic also brought about higher standards of cleanliness for hospitals coupled with an increased rate of HAIs.

This perfect storm has prompted the need for hospital cleaning staff to practice effective time management. They need to make sure they’re cleaning and disinfecting all floors and surfaces throughout the hospital. But workers can manage only so many hours without succumbing to burnout or physical strain caused by repetitive cleaning tasks. This is where mechanized cleaning and hospital cleaning robots come to the rescue to help solve growing challenges for EVS departments and cleaning crews.

Hospitals need cleaning machines stat

It’s no wonder cleaning machines are becoming a staple in some forward-thinking hospital EVS departments and BSC partners. Mechanized cleaning machines can help decrease 52% of airborne dust and 40% of bacteria found within a building. Automated equipment like robotic floor scrubbers can work alongside human cleaners to take on frequent, methodical floor scrubbing that consumes time and energy for overburdened staff.

With automation and advanced floor cleaning technologies, hospitals can streamline cleaning operations and reduce the time and effort for cleaning tasks. Cleaning with an automated scrubber is up to 64% faster than a mop, and bucket and robotic floor cleaners can clean up to 13 hours a day using the Lithium-Ion battery option.

Data-driven mechanized cleaning can also prove that floors are cleaned frequently and consistently, helping hospitals achieve higher productivity and patient and staff satisfaction.

Optimize cleaning efficiency and effectiveness

A new wave of practical, modern hospital floor cleaning machines like automatic ride-on and walk-behind scrubbers and robotic floor cleaners are transforming cleaning. Not only do mechanized cleaning machines reduce cleaning time and labor costs they heighten cleaning efficiency and effectiveness.

For example, Tennant’s T500 Walk-Behind Scrubber and T581 Micro Ride-On Scrubber combine high-pressure scrubbing with the precise use of detergents to improve cleaning performance over manual mop-and-bucket floor cleaning. Also, the Tennant i-mop® family of mechanized mops can deliver up to 90% cleaner surfaces compared to the conventional mop-and-bucket approach. That’s because they apply a powerful scrubbing action that cleans much deeper than wet-mop cleaning.

Cleaning automation empowers employees

Cleaning crews need to focus on using technologies, products and processes that meet the established health and safety standards for hospitals. But with pressure to do more with fewer staff, they need solutions that help them be empowered to rise to the challenges.

Mechanized cleaning technology is an empowering solution for hospital employees—from the EVS staff that shoulder much of the cleaning burden to the doctors and nurses who provide patient care. Automated cleaning technology frees up time for cleaners to focus on other high-value tasks that reflect the high-level of cleaning required in hospital environments. Likewise, medical staff have more time to focus on critical tasks such as patient care, treatment, and administrative duties.

Meet heightened hygiene standards

HAI incidents have been on the rise the last few years, much to the concern of patients and hospital staff. Several studies have shown that consistent facility cleaning—particularly floor cleaning—can reduce the risk of HAIs. Incorporating mechanized cleaning and automated solutions into your cleaning routine can help hospitals meet heightened hygiene standards and gain patient and staff confidence.

Mechanized cleaning provides consistent cleaning outcomes that can be measured and repeated. Automation of cleaning tasks minimizes the risk of human error, especially in the case of robotic floor cleaning machines that operate autonomously, effectively and reliably. In addition, mechanized cleaning helps busy hospital cleaners and medical staff consistently adhere to rigorous cleaning protocols.

Read more about the keys to building a modern hospital floor cleaning program.

Read Tennant case studies for hospitals and healthcare facilities.

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