Blog, Medical and healthcare
Medical facilities: why mobile hand wash units are vital during planned maintenance or water outages
Apr
How even large hospital buildings can stay open…
The tactical use of portable sinks is an effective solution to ensure critical water supply is not interrupted when maintenance is planned. Large numbers of sinks units can be ordered and delivered to site as part of a turnkey service for the period required.
They can be placed close to the location of existing bathrooms or toilet areas, or inside the washrooms, for as long as needed. This often mean that wards or even large buildings can stay open and run as normal.
This also applies when unforeseen circumstances occur, and water is shut off without warning. The portable sinks can be supplied quickly, often at short notice until normal supply can be reinstated.
United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust hired some units recently, illustrating how even a short outage can be critical. They needed to keep sinks available for a short, early morning period when plumbing work was planned. On the surface this sounded good planning, very early before the usual demand begins. The Infection Control contacts challenged this as the work was likely to affect water supply to the maternity ward. They specified that they had to have a sink for every bed in the ward and as they stated,
“They don’t know how many mothers are going into labour at 2.00 am.”
Support facilities and manageable cost
As pressure mounts on budgets the use of high-quality portable sink units can assist by adding facilities without significant expenditure. They can allow short-term expansion to cope with unexpected demand, convert non-plumbed area for controlling infection outbreaks or for supporting areas, such as reception halls, that have no access to washrooms.
Individual care and visible reminders in care homes
Having portable sinks as part of the care package available in a care home environment offers reassurance to the residents, and to the family visitors, that managers are thinking ahead and most importantly thinking about the potential risks to their residents.
They can also offer some independence to residents, who may be less mobile and giving them easy access to safe, temperature-controlled warm water. They can also help support staff who are providing individual care, right where they are needed.
Just as importantly they can give a visible reminder and call to action for residents and visitors that regular, soap and water hand washing will safeguard the health of everyone in the building.
The Teal portable hand wash range for medical facilities »
Teal Task Force: quickly set up hand wash units at entrances to infected wards
The Teal Task Force is a unique fast response service available in the UK to deliver high quality hot water hand washing facilities on a next working day basis.
Fast delivery and setup – every Hygienius MediWash is sited and set up by trained TEAL Task Force staff. Each unit is delivered complete with a generous supply of liquid soap and paper towels.