A series of solutions for NHS hospitals designed to face the growing threat of Ebola have been developed by specialist infection control experts in the UK.

With flexible single patient infection control enclosures that can be erected without the need to close a unit, and powerful bug killing robotic technology, global bio-decontamination leader Bioquell is all set to help heathcare professionals minimise any infectious spread.

Western hospitals are facing a challenge when confronted to the risk of Ebola contamination.  The UK Department of Health has issued infection prevention (patient segregation) and decontamination guidelines. These can prove difficult to apply given the structure of the national heathcare system. UK hospitals are mainly configured with open wards and a limited number of single patient rooms.

The Bioquell Pod is a way to segregate individual bed-spaces within a multi-occupancy bay. A Pod is not suitable for the containment of a patient with confirmed Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) unless no single rooms are available. However, a Pod would be preferable to an open bay in situations when single rooms are occupied by higher priority patients. Also, Pods provide a useful way to pre-emptively isolate patients assessed as high-risk of Ebola in Emergency Departments, which may not have single rooms.

Another measure is decontamination as the UK guidelines make a distinction between areas that have or have not been contaminated with blood. The guidelines recommend the use of chlorine-containing agents for surfaces, with a higher than usual concentration. For terminal disinfection of the room, ‘fumigation’ (gaseous decontamination) is recommended. A recent study published in the Journal of Hospital Infection demonstrated the efficacy of Bioquell hydrogen peroxide vapour (HPV) for the inactivation of a number of viruses including TGEV and influenza, which are both enveloped RNA viruses so share the same basic structure as Ebola.

Commenting on the global Ebola threat, James Salkeld said, “When it comes to tackling the risk of Ebola contamination, hospitals need fast and effective solutions to contain the spread. Bioquell offers both infection prevention/control and eradication solutions that can be implemented easily in such an emergency scenario.”

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