By Bill Balek
Follow these best cleaning practices to promote a healthy and fun summer
Summer is meant to be fun, with warm weather, sunshine and that destination vacation you’ve been waiting all year to enjoy. And it usually is – unless you’re one of the many summer travelers who fall ill due to the spread of infectious diseases resulting from increased travel and mobility. As part of an industry with countless interactions every day during busy summer travel, it’s important for hotels, airports and other hospitality and travel services to maintain the cleanliness of their facilities for both guests and employees.
Proper cleaning techniques have a direct correlation to overall health. When higher standards of cleaning are implemented, there is an 80 percent reduced probability of catching the common cold or influenza.
How can you ensure your cleaning methods are up to standard? Here are 10 tips to evaluate and improve existing cleaning procedures in your facilities and defend against summertime colds and flus.
- Just clean. Don’t underestimate the value of everyday cleaning to decrease the risk of spreading influenza and cold viruses. Make cleaning a part of employees’ daily routine in order to combat the growth of microbes.
- Keep it simple. Flu and cold viruses are typically weak, so standard cleaning practices and products are often enough to take care of them. Avoid using special cleaning products or processes, as they have the potential to cause more harm than good to employees and guests through eye, skin and respiratory irritation.
- Adopt a holistic approach. Pay close attention to details. At first glance, a facility might appear to be the picture of cleanliness, but on further inspection, less obvious surfaces have been neglected.
- Identify “high touch” points. There are surfaces and objects that field more interaction than others, like door handles, tables, desks, telephones and sink fixtures. These surfaces are often some of the most trafficked, and as a result need greater attention during cleaning. This can significantly decrease the amount of environmental pathogens on those surfaces.
- Prioritize hygiene. Provide resources that promote personal hygiene by supplying tissues, no-touch trashcans, hand soap and hand sanitizers for both guests and staff to use.
- Find the perfect match. Tailor your cleaning and disinfecting methods to the kinds of germs you’re trying to get rid of and avoid spreading. Most studies show that flu viruses can live and potentially infect a person for two to eight hours after landing on a surface, which underscores the importance of timely and regular cleaning routines.
- When in doubt, check the directions. Always make sure to follow label directions on any cleaning or disinfecting products you use. You want to be sure you’re using the product correctly in order for it to be operating effectively.
- Safety first. Make sure to read both the directions and hazard warnings on product labels. This is where important safety information will be located, such as the need to wear gloves during use and warnings to avoid mixing with other products.
- Write a plan. When procedures or protocols don’t exist in written form, less experienced employees may be unaware of necessary cleaning tasks. Take the time to develop and implement a comprehensive plan describing your facility’s cleaning protocols, as well as the process to measure and monitor effectiveness of the methods.
- Encourage a healthy lifestyle. Beyond the more obvious positive impacts of exercising, eating healthy and sleeping an average of eight hours per night, a person’s overall health has a pronounced impact on the body’s immune system. An increasingly healthy lifestyle can help your employees fight off and recover from illness.
A modest investment in these areas can provide valuable return in regard to facility quality, in turn leading to increased staff productivity and improved employee and guest health. Don’t let inferior cleaning practices ruin your guests’ and employees’ summers, or your reputation. Use these tips to clean effectively, and to ensure employees and guests won’t give illness a second thought this travel season.
