Cleanliness monitoring method and system

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cleanliness monitoring method for enhancing hygiene in a room or area of a facility, especially a hospital. After cleaning, the level of cleanliness is verified via real time biological and / or microbiological measurements using a hand held device such as an ATP luminometer. Until the desired level of cleanliness has been achieved, cleaning is repeated. Motion sensors determine the activity level of a room (such as a bathroom) and communicate enhanced cleaning needs centrally or to the hand-held device. The hand-held device can be a smartphone or tablet provided with an add-on module.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0001]The present invention relates to a hygiene enhancing method for enhancing hygiene in a room or area of a facility and to a hygiene enhancing system for carrying out the hygiene enhancing method. Furthermore, the invention relates to a facility or building comprising the hygiene enhancing system and to the use of the hygiene enhancing system.BACKGROUND ART[0002]Many people consider cleaning an insignificant low status job with no development opportunities. Most people are taught how to clean by their parents, and people usually do it in their own homes. A trivial job which most people want to get done as quickly as possible.[0003]This attitude is actually a very good indication of the focus we want to put on cleaning. Similarly, the daily handling of cleaning procedures in e.g. hospitals is deprioritised in favour of treatment, care and research.[0004]Surveys show that 10 percent of all hospitalised patients acquire an infection due to inadequate hygiene. ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

This approach ensures higher cleanliness levels, allows for continuous documentation and adjustment of hygiene efforts, and supports cleaning operatives in maintaining professional standards, thereby reducing hospital-acquired infections and improving overall hygiene management.

Problems solved by technology

Hospital-acquired infections cause 3,000 Danes dying every year as well as more than 1 million sick days, just as inadequate hygiene places an economic burden on society of close to DKK 4 billion.

Efforts within the area of cleaning are in far most cases aimed at reducing the costs of the actual cleaning and at minimising the environmental impact of cleaning, and no one has yet been able to come up with technological solutions which create the necessary overview of the effort and quality of cleaning.

Similarly, no one has applied technology in an effort to support the daily work of cleaning staff and to ensure that their work is continuously done so professionally that a spread of infectious deceases can be reduced.

Studies of the cleaning efforts made in Danish hospitals show that it is not possible to assess the value of the general cleaning effort in Denmark because the quality of the work done cannot be surveyed.

This is problematic for several reasons, e.g.:1) If the quality of the work you pay for cannot be surveyed, it is not possible to establish and maintain a serious national quality level of the cleaning effort.2) If a target quality level cannot be established, it is not possible to make demands on an internal organization or external suppliers regarding their work.3) If it is not possible to make demands on the cleaning you pay for on very specific and documented grounds, a desire to improve the effort will be aimless.

A simple conclusion is that it is currently not possible to link the cleaning effort and the effect of same.

At present, no legislation dealing with this problem exists, which is presumably a consequence of the fact that no system exists for measuring and assessing the level of hygiene.

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