Infection Control

The flu has been a major source of infection for many decades. It, like COVID, is transmitted through the air and is tracked annually, including by all concerned with our current pandemic. The flu virus also passes directly person to person and indirectly through fomites. Human outbreaks have seen a slight uptick (we are in flu season), but because of the precautions taken for COVID-19, the flu virus outbreak levels are still low.

Mass gatherings like the Hajj, Super Bowl and the Olympics have the potential to amplify the spread of a pathogen. Special care must be taken for these types of events. We look at how sports were impacted by the 1918 H1N1 pandemic that claimed at least 50 million lives worldwide including 675,000 in the United States alone.

Mold is a significant threat to health. Mold on food can cause illness, and fungi in the air is a major threat to human health. We’ve been surprised to find many mold contractors fall woefully short in their charge to remediate mold issues.

Fungi, bacteria, virus and mold aren’t just around-the-house issues. The maritime industry, to what should be to no one’s surprise because of its arena – is profoundly affected by these menaces.

Ambulances transport the sick and injured every day all over the world. They provide a vital service to their communities, providing life-saving services daily. Getting those who need it initial care, moving the already sick to better situations: ambulances are integral. It’s a necessary service that really can’t be overrated. And when we need an ambulance, we certainly don’t expect it to create even more problems for us. However, when an ambulance is not tended to with as much diligence as its human payload, more problems are what we might just get.

Gyms need to up their hygiene levels. Poor hygiene lends to secondary infections acquired in the gym. Most of the gyms I attend have the clients do the cleaning or wipe downs of the equipment after use. Most attend have no clue about dwell time or the need to clean their hands. In my gym, there is a hand sanitizer station, but use is optional. So dumb! It is time to uses persistent cleaning technology in gyms.

Antimicrobial resistance has been and is one of the biggest health challenges of our time. No corner of the globe is exempt. Germs are clever. As often as we find a way to torpedo one, it just as quickly begins to find ways to defeat the assault. We find antibiotics to fend off infection and illnesses but their staying power over time is less than certain. Which makes it critical that we constantly seek to understand the causes, the best methods to keep antimicrobial/antibiotic resistance at bay. The study must be constant; the reactions strong. The stakes are high.

Food production facilities have better hygiene protocols than many hospitals.

Countless studies link toilets to secondary infections. When a toilet is flushed, the toilet plume aerosol is a very real thing.

Hand hygiene is one of the simplest, most basic practices that prevents the spread of infection. But we can’t forget what is left behind in the sinks in which hand washing is done. Sinks become a reservoir for pathogens, deposited in the pipes and coming from the hands that are washed using them. Biofilms form in the pipes and can be aerosolized from drips and running water, putting the dangerous makeup of those biofilms in a position to be spread.