How do Infections Spread?
The process of spreading infections and viruses is straightforward yet incredibly scary. Pathogens get picked up by touching other contaminated people or contaminated surfaces. Instead of washing our hands immediately, we often aren't aware that bacteria has been transmitted, so we go about our day touching our faces, touching others, etc.
At a certain point, when you have caught the infection and begin to get sick, you may sneeze, or cough and droplets of those germs and bacteria can fall onto the same surfaces like desks, computers, phones, etc. The process then continues throughout several different people or potentially even animals. We tend to go throughout our daily lives not thinking about it; however, it is essential, especially now, that we become more conscious.
The Truth of Germs in the Workplace
80% of all common infections that we spread are indeed through our hands. According to scientific research, the average person touches their face approximately 23 times every hour.
When we feel or briefly touch our mouths and noses, we often do so with unwashed hands, sometimes leading to infection if dangerous viruses are spreading.
In addition to this, we also tend to touch numerous germ-laden surfaces containing fomites daily, and those germs can also spread.
The average toilet seat has approximately 295 bacteria on it per square inch, which is why it is paramount to wash your hands afterwards thoroughly.
Nowadays, we share more joint items than we ever did, for example, vehicles (like cars, taxis, trains, planes), electronic machinery and devices, and many more. We must improve hygiene levels within office environments to prevent spreading germs at an increasing rate.
Promoting good hygiene in the workplace
Schools, workplaces, and other corporate establishment buildings that include vast levels of people entering and exiting daily can become some of the most prominent places for bacteria to spread. Bacteria and local, national or worldwide viruses can spread quickly from each one person, primarily through touch, breath or droplets in the air, much like the cases of COVID-19 or during cold and flu season.
It should always be paramount to have good personal hygiene in every building and throughout every walk of life; however, it has never been more critical to promote good hygiene.
Ensure that you, your employees and any business visitors make an extreme effort to wash their hands regularly and thoroughly and utilise all the products you provide to cleanse and dry their hands.
Importance of handwashing
There is incredible importance to maintaining your and your employee's workplace hygiene to the highest possible levels within the workplace. Poor hand hygiene can be detrimental, especially within the past two years; it can affect the individuals you work with and potentially have an even more significant knock-on effect on your business entirely. An unhealthy workforce can be detrimental to your companies success and the well-being of your staff.
You want to consistently ensure that the conditions of your building and the personal hygiene levels of those inside it are of the highest industry standard, no matter the size of your company. The most important way to do so is by stressing the significance of hand washing and thoroughly cleaning the bathroom or washroom with high-quality, effective disinfectants and hand gels.
Germs and bacteria can transfer and rapidly generate in the workplace incredibly fast, causing illnesses to spread throughout the workforce. It is imperative to create a hygienic environment.
The best way to fight germs and bacteria is by hand washing and providing excellent, adequate quality handwashing facilities.
Have plenty of hand sanitisers on deck, some in each room or by every desk. Ensure that there are always hand soap dispensers and filled hand towel dispensers in every toilet or bathroom.
You may also have hand dryers, but it is best to supply both to ensure all hands are completely dry. When everything is available, they are more likely to be used by your staff and improve general hygiene standards.
Workplace Cleaning Regimes
It is always wise to ensure that thorough and regular deep cleans occur within every facility and communal areas, such as washrooms, kitchens and meeting areas. We highly recommend that all companies have some form of open-pan or strategic working environment that allows their building to stay clean and at a distance.
Put in place some basic workday cleaning practices for your communal spaces and then hire a team of professionals, for example, those at Anglesey Commercial Cleaning Ltd, to undertake a professional, thorough deep clean at least twice a year, or more if you can afford to do so. In doing so, you can prevent a drastic build-up of debris, bacteria, dirt and harmful contamination.
A robust cleaning routine should help you keep key areas where germs reside most the cleanest, such as kitchens, bathrooms, desks, everyday resources, etc. Our London, England services can help you maintain the workplace hygiene levels of your building, finding ways and methods to support healthy habits and expectations for restrooms, communal kitchens and meeting areas.
Stop sharing
Do your best when in the workplace to not share as many items as possible in communal spaces, for example, tea towels, mugs, food and bathroom and kitchen equipment or cutlery.
Plenty of these items host high levels of harmful bacteria and are often not cleaned well enough or cleaned regularly enough.
Alternatives to use may include tissue paper, paper towels from dispensers, plastic or wooden plates and cutlery that workers can throw away after use.
Practising good hygiene
Practising good hygiene in your premises will keep away harmful viruses and therefore, ultimately improve and protect the levels of productivity and the overall performance of the staff. There will be fewer staff going on sick leave and much more work done in a healthy, hygienic environment.
There are many specific issues that come with being surrounded by many people and interacting with the location, so you are expected to implement rules and restrictions and encourage people to pick up healthy habits and daily cleaning to keep everyone safe and a healthy working environment.
Preventing Spread
For those that suspect they could have stomach bugs similar to the Norovirus, you must immediately notify your manager or employer, ensuring you do not return to the premises for at least 48 hours or until your symptoms have completely disappeared.
These procedures and rules must be implemented and made a conscious priority as soon as possible to follow all guidelines. Ensure your staff focus when going about offices and communal spaces, careful where they are placing their hands, the equipment and tools they are picking up, etc.
Compliance with work area cleanliness and the workplace hygiene policy is imperative for all businesses. Many industries and public sectors have different hygiene requirements; however, it's best to be meticulous, placing hand gel by all entry and exit points, inside every bathroom and by desks.
Regular Deep Cleaning
When infectious outbreaks occur in the world or throughout your local area, you must aim to eliminate any risk of infection within the workplace so that everybody can continue working efficiently for as long as possible.
All facilities and spaces within your commercial business building must have strategic cleaning plans in place so that cleaning can ultimately be more thorough.
Anglesey Commercial Cleaning Ltd provide specialist technicians that will complete regular deep cleaning jobs on your establishment.
They are fully equipped with the latest technology, cleaning materials and highly trained with plenty of extensive experience under their belts.
We can provide you with top disinfection services to high standards. Beginning by conducting specialist professional cleans within the office can successfully help decrease any risks of illnesses occurring and spreading within your employees.
However, it is good to note that when outbreaks of viruses or diseases occur, the managers on-site must get in touch with all specialist cleaning providers, such as Anglesey Commercial Cleaning Ltd, who can deploy all rights to complete the disinfection job within your premises.
Contact us today for further information. Whether internal or external cleaners, our professionals can provide fast response, free quotes, and any advice you require on workplace maintenance. Our phone number and email address are available on the website for you to reach us.
If you need professional deep cleaning in Caernarfon, Anglesey or Gwynedd, you can find out more about our commercial cleaning services by following the link below.