Ambulance Cleaning with EcoMist
Research type
Research Study
Full title
A two armed, randomised, controlled exploratory study of adding the AmbuGard cleaning system to normal deep cleaning procedures in a regional ambulance service
IRAS ID
266440
Contact name
Graham McClelland
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
This study will explore the impact of adding a novel cleaning system to current ambulance deep cleaning practice. Deep cleaning is defined here as a scheduled clean, conducted on a regular basis where the ambulance is taken off operational duties for the specific purpose of cleaning.
There is a considerable body of knowledge around how hospitals should be cleaned in order to ensure the highest standards of patient safety. Hospitals have put considerable effort into reducing healthcare acquired infections (HAIs). Outbreaks of MRSA and C.Difficile now gain national attention due to recognition of the risk that these organisms present.
There has been little research into ambulance cleanliness and the potential for ambulances to be linked to HAI. At present the literature suggests that ambulances carry a range of potentially harmful pathogens, ambulance cleaning practices vary between trusts and the effectiveness of these practices are difficult to measure.
EcoMist Biotechnics have developed a dry misting decontamination system aimed at ambulance use. The system is called AmbuGard and it claims to sanitise an ambulance in <30 minutes with 99.9999% effectiveness against most common pathogens. AmbuGard is being used by European ambulance services and private services in the UK but there are no scientific studies of its use in a NHS ambulance service. Further details are available at https://www.eco-mist-biotechnics.com/ambulances/
This study will establish a baseline of ambulance cleanliness on a sample of operational ambulances. These vehicles will then be randomised to either normal deep cleaning or normal deep cleaning plus the AmbuGard system. The vehicles will then have their cleanliness measured again. This will allows us to report on the cleanliness of the ambulances and the impact of the two cleaning processes.REC name
N/A
REC reference
N/A