A program of the Maryland Pesticide Education Network |
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The IPM in Healthcare Facilities Project promotes safer pest and weed management best practices that are effective and protect the public and environment. Exposure to harmful pesticides can cause or exacerbate the very issues for which patients/residents are being treated. Especially during this challenging pandemic, we keep you updated on important news and research related to COVID-19 issues — from least toxic disinfectants to pesticides that do/do not exacerbate coronavirus symptoms. We support your efforts ensuring a protected and toxic-free environment for your facility and those you serve.
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Join us for this Lunch & Learn webinar series!
Six 20-minute webinars on 6 topics over 6 months
with time to get Dr. Green's input on your facility's challenges.
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For: EVS Managers/employees, Maintenance and Housekeeping professionals
No fee for the series, but space limited so please register now
for the first two webinars, Webinar #1 March 4th and #2 April 7.
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Register Now for the First 2 Webinars |
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Webinar #1 – MARCH 4th, 12:30 PM
"Year-round Common Sense Strategies for Preventing and Solving Rat Issues"
Webinar #2 – APRIL 7th, 12:30 PM
"Common Sense Strategies for Preventing and Solving
Weed, Turf and Landscape Issues"
See Dr. Green's general overview of what constitutes a defined/prioritized
IPM program in health care below.
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Safest Disinfectants for Health Care Facilities |
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"Spraying disinfectants can result in risks to the eyes, respiratory or skin irritation and the resulting health effects. Spraying or fogging of certain chemicals, such as formaldehyde, chlorine-based agents or quaternary ammonium compounds, is not recommended due to adverse health effects on workers in facilities where these methods have been utilized..."
– World Health Organization
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If you missed this important 15-minute presentation... a worthwhile webinar
"Pros / Cons of Sanitizers & Disinfectants for COVID-19"
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ONLINE VIDEO LEARNING
Maryland experts, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health Asst. Professor Dr. Ana Rule and Environmental Health Chair for American Academy of Pediatrics - Md Chapter, Dr. Michael Ichniowski, presenting.
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George Thomas, VP Facilities at Kennedy Krieger Institute
on Using Hydrogen Peroxide-based Disinfectant:
"I find Oxivir Tb is very effective in disinfecting because it is fast-acting (dwell time is 1 minute). It is effective against 27 microorganisms and viruses such as MRSA, VRE, Norovirus, SARS-CoV2 (COVID-19), and Influenza, just to name a few. This product is also safe because it is non-corrosive, a non-irritant, and non-bleaching. The active ingredient is hydrogen peroxide and it bio-degrades into oxygen and water... The electrostatic sprayer sprays a fine mist of the disinfectant onto hard and soft surfaces. After cleaning, we spray an entire room (walls, blinds, curtains, carpet and all furniture etc.) with the disinfectant and allow the proper dwell time to disinfect entire area."
Oxivir Tb also comes in ready to use wipes and as a liquid spray for soft surfaces such as curtains, carpet, and cloth furniture.
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Reducing Pesticides That Can Exacerbate COVID-19 |
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Now more than ever, it is critical to evaluate your approved pesticides list and pesticide use protocol with your pest management company and staff to ensure least-toxic pesticides are used and only as a last resort. Reviewing your IPM practices will greatly reduce the use of hazardous pesticides that can exacerbate patients’ COVID-19 symptoms, complicating their treatment plan and unnecessarily depressing their immune systems. We are here to help you ensure your facility is supporting a safe environment for vulnerable patients and essential staff.
At no cost, we will review your vendor's log entries and let you know if there is any use of pesticides that can increase severe impacts of coronavirus on patients and residents and suggest safer effective alternatives.
Our mission is to serve your health care facility.
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Dr. Green on 5 Principles of a High-level Prioritized
IPM Program
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- It is essential to inspect a facility to determine how pests enter, where they hide, and what they feed on. This information is important in prescribing a prioritized IPM program.
- Inspectors must identify the pest in order to control or eradicate. Never guess at an identity, or control measures might not work.
- Ensure that staff and employees follow pest proofing and sanitation procedures, which are a vital element in deterring pests, as are maintenance tasks such as repairing cracks in foundations, installing weather-stripping and door sweeps, and removing ground litter near the building.
- Inspectors should use traps, which are available for most pests, and enable staff to monitor and manage pests with a minimal use of least-toxic pesticides.
- The development and management of an IPM program are just as important as its execution. Managers should consider these steps:
- Adopt a policy that minimizes the use of pesticides, which can currently exacerbate COVID-19 symptoms and can also lead to cancer, adverse reproductive and developmental effects, and other known or suspected health hazard problems.
- Develop an IPM program that prioritizes pest prevention and non-toxic methods of pest control.
- Halt preventive routine pesticide applications.
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The IPM in Health Care Facilities Project would like to spotlight your facility’s successful IPM practices and current disinfectant strategies in our next newsletter. And we are here to help you with your IPM program. Just contact us for input on challenging pest or weed problems or to review your vendor’s logbook entries to ensure your IPM policy is being adhered to with least-toxic pesticides that are used only as a last resort
Share your top Spring / Summer pest prevention strategies or simply recognize an IPM team leader!
by March 1st to be included.
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