DS 41 - Toward Establishing a Patient-centric Performance Standard for Whole-room Healthcare UVC Surface Disinfection

Background: Infection Preventionists (IPs) are responsible for selecting effective disinfectants to decrease the risk of healthcare-associated infections (HAI). Ultraviolet radiation (UV-C) devices are commonly used for this purpose but there is a lack of an industry standard that establishes efficacy and effectiveness for whole-room UV-C disinfection. As a result, infection preventionists primarily rely on manufacturer marketing material for efficacy data which may put patients at risk of HAI.

Methods: The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the Healthcare Standards Institute (HSI) has convened a 17-person committee, composed of representatives from the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC), Association of periOperative nurses (AORN), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and the Internation Ultraviolet Association (IUVA) with nurses, physicians, microbiologists, industrial hygienists and medical device industries. This panel has developed separate performance standards for the operating room, and the patient room/bathroom. Room dimensions, furnishings, temperature and relative humidity are specified in the standard. Performance will include 50 carriers inoculated with 10^4 to 10^5 of actual HAI pathogens placed about the room on surfaces most likely to be contaminated. The carriers are made of real-world materials such as stainless steel, formica, plastic, vinyl, etc. UVC dose is measured to determine potential for damage to hospital equipment/furnishings. Applicable standards for electrical and UVC safety are considered, as are methods to reduce the risk of cross contaminations between rooms. Total UV-C treatment time and staff time are accounted for.

Results: Definitions of success of the prescribed performance standard will be discussed during the presentation.

Conclusions: This standard will provide IPs with a tool to evaluate the multiple UV-C emitters available on the market. If a UV-C system meets these impartial standards, IPs will be better able to reliably protect patients from HAI.