Medical facilities of all types — from hospitals and clinics to medical offices and assisted living homes — require specific services to maintain safe healthcare environments for patients.
Learn how medical cleaning companies handle treatment rooms, long-term care centers, and office spaces to prevent the spread of disease while maintaining compliance with industry regulations.
Medical cleaning services should match each facility’s needs
The commercial cleaning services that different medical facilities need will vary, depending on:
- If they have spaces that require sanitization or decontamination.
- Whether they contain treatment, office, and/or living spaces.
- What kind of industry regulations and guidelines apply, such as from Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), or state health agencies.
Sanitation services for hospitals
In a hospital setting, reducing the risk of cross-contamination and hospital-acquired infections has to be the priority for any cleaning services. Hospitals are filled with patients in every state of health, so infection prevention is key.
Cleaning personnel need to know how to handle cleaning rooms while they’re occupied, how to safely navigate active floors, and how to protect patient privacy.
Cleaning products and procedures: Because of the high risk of cross-contamination, cleaning services need to use hospital-grade disinfectants and cleaning products in areas like waiting rooms, hallways, bathrooms, and treatment spaces. Single-use materials and tools need to be disposed of, and equipment and operating rooms need to be sterilized. Hospitals also need janitorial services for non-treatment spaces, like medical offices.
Cleaning services for assisted living facilities or hospice care
Assisted living facilities and hospice care centers need a combination of services. While these facilities often contain high-touch areas like treatment rooms that require periodic hospital-grade sterilization, they also often include living spaces or common areas that need regular disinfection services.
Cleaning products and procedures: Shared areas — like waiting and visiting rooms — and private rooms changing occupants need to be thoroughly disinfected. Hospital-grade disinfectants and chemical sterilants may be needed before or after certain medical procedures. Living spaces and common areas will also require janitorial services.
Medical cleaning for clinics and urgent care centers
Preventing infection and sanitizing spaces are important considerations in clinics and urgent care centers.
Cleaning products and procedures: Clinics and urgent care centers will use many of the same cleaning products and methods as other healthcare facilities. But they will likely not need sterilization due to the limited nature of medical procedures performed. Specific treatment rooms may need disinfection after certain non-surgical procedures like stitching a wound or catheterization in addition to regular cleaning.
Medical office cleaning services
In addition to specialized cleaning procedures that prevent cross-contamination and the spread of pathogens, healthcare facilities often have medical offices that need more general cleaning.
Well-trained cleaning staff can work with healthcare administrators to plan what kinds of cleaning each space needs. In some cases, there may be frequent traffic between high-risk areas of a medical facility and its office spaces. So cleaning service providers can help determine which spaces need regular sanitization versus janitorial services, as well as how to coordinate that work.
Preventing cross-contamination in different healthcare facilities
Different healthcare facilities will come with varying risk levels for cross-contamination, and medical cleaning companies need to take that into account when developing protocols and cleaning schedules.
Because clinics and urgent care centers only offer outpatient treatment, the risk of contamination for individual patients is lower when compared to hospitals or long-term care facilities.
However, more patients move between treatment and waiting rooms in outpatient facilities, which calls for more frequent cleaning. Professional cleaners should have appropriate training and certification to know when and where to use certain cleaning products and procedures based on the risk level and what kinds of high-traffic surfaces each space has.
How medical cleaning services can include green or eco-friendly methods
Although healthcare facilities need cleaning that meets specific standards, green cleaning products and protocols can still be used as well. Most facilities still require janitorial services for medical offices and common areas. That can be a great time to incorporate cleaning products and procedures that are environmentally friendly and non-toxic.
Certain certified-green products (e.g, Green Seal or Ecologo) can be used in hospital and other clinical settings where appropriate, as well as high-filtration vacuuming, water-based scrubbing machines, and ultraviolet (UV) disinfection.
How medical cleaning services are priced
Medical cleaning service packages vary just as much as the needs of different healthcare facilities. The variety of services a facility needs — and how those service packages are priced — will increase with more patient and visitor traffic, more rooms that need specialized cleaning, and greater square footage.
A hospital — whether large or small — will need medical cleaning services that include sterilization for select high-risk treatment spaces, janitorial services for common areas like waiting rooms, and regular decontamination for patient rooms. On the other hand, medical offices may only need daily or weekly janitorial services.
How are professional cleaners trained to work in medical facilities?
In any active commercial or industrial spaces, professional cleaners need training on how to navigate workspaces carefully to avoid interrupting operations, and that’s especially important for healthcare settings. Training on how to clean in medical facilities also promotes health, safety, and patient privacy.
Professional cleaners use specific protocols for medical facilities
Training standards for medical cleaning from programs like the International Sanitary Supply Association (ISSA)’s Cleaning Management Institute help cleaning service providers safely clean biohazards commonly found in healthcare facilities.
Professional cleaners working in hospitals, urgent care centers, and assisted living spaces need to know how to properly use personal protective equipment (PPE), such as gloves, masks, long pants, closed-toe shoes, and disposable coveralls. This training not only keeps the cleaning staff safer during their work, but it also keeps hospitals compliant with OSHA and CDC standards, especially given recommended COVID-19 protocols for healthcare facilities.
How to stay HIPAA compliant when using medical cleaning services
In addition to safety training, medical cleaners also need to know how to comply with patient privacy regulations. The Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) defines who is allowed access to personally identifiable patient data.
Professional cleaners need to know how to avoid accessing patient information or promptly report exposed information to help facilities stay compliant with legal regulations and HIPAA standards to avoid costly fines.
JK Janitorial can do all this and more
Our medical cleaning services include green cleaning by default. At JK Janitorial, our staff is ready to keep your hospital, care center, clinic, or medical office compliant with biosafety and HIPAA regulations.
Contact us today to learn how our trained staff can help you keep your medical facility safe for your staff and your patients.
