How Medical and Nursing Facilities are Protecting Residents and Staff During COVID-19

The beginning of 2020 with the COVID-19 pandemic has changed just about every sector of our society. Medical and nursing facilities are especially interested in protecting the elder population and the staff that takes care of them. They are implementing new protocols that decrease the risk of passing on contagious infections.

Elderly people have a compromised immune system due to age and the presence of chronic diseases. They can more easily contract infections. Managers of facilities are responding by working with commercial painting contractors with the use of antimicrobic paint to coat surfaces.

Why Senior Citizens Are at Greater Risk for COVID-19 and Other Infections?

The elderly population in the U.S. is composed of people who are 65 years of age and older. This group generally has a less responsive immune system. Weakened by age and more often than not, chronic diseases, the elderly have a hard time overcoming infection. They will not contract every disease that they come across, but they will have a greater risk of being infected. These infections can get out of hand and become lethal.

Other Considerations for the Elderly Population

In most cases, elderly people that live in nursing facilities spend most of their time with little or no physical activity. They usually spend most of their time indoors, which makes the situation even worse. Sedentary people that don’t spend a lot of time outdoors are more likely to become sick. Humans need lots of sunshine and fresh clean air. The natural flow of air received outdoors is invaluable. Viruses and bacteria are deterred by good oxygenation.

Ventilation systems used indoors are filled with pathogens that circulate all around the building. Cases exist where people in a building begin to become ill. This is known as the sick building syndrome” (SBS). It is directly affected by the amount of time they spend inside the infected place. The lack of circulating fresh air creates an environment where pathogens can thrive. It becomes a devastating situation when the building is an apartment complex, or worse yet, a senior living facility full of elders.

Managers Have Risen to the Occasion During COVID-19

People who manage residential buildings, including senior communities, are playing a huge part in keeping the safety of the facilities. We are seeing a huge increase in the number of places that are now using antimicrobic paints. Commercial painting professionals explain that using microbicidal paints and primers can greatly decrease the number of pathogens on surfaces. The paints create an actively hostile environment for common pathogens. Coatings can be applied to any surface including doors, countertops, walls, and even furniture. All of these surfaces are known for having allowing microbes to be transmitted.

Antimicrobial paints are certainly creating a safer environment in senior living facilities both for residents and staff. Seniors now live in communities that combine medical care and an active lifestyle. Although it is great for their quality of life, it does create more opportunities to spread infections. Management is facing the challenge of continuing activities that are permitted during the lockdown and keeping everyone safe.

How can Antimicrobial Paints Stop Contagious Disease?

Antimicrobial coatings have the ability to inhibit and destroy certain pathogens once in contact with the treated substrate. Sherwin-Williams’ Paint Shield has become a leading coating in the industry.

Common Pathogens Don’t Stand a Chance with Paint Shield

The beauty of being able to protect surfaces with a coat that kills pathogens is that the microbes are killed even if the surface hasn’t been recently disinfected. That is the power of the formula in these products.

These are examples of pathogens that cannot live on treated surfaces:

• Enterobacter aerogenes
• VRE (Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus)
• E. coli (Escherichia coli)
• MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus)
• Staph Infections (Staphylococcus)

Scientists performed lab tests to confirm the effectiveness of Paint Shield before it was launched to market. It reports a 99.9% destruction of pathogens within two hours of contact.

As long as the surface remains intact, Paint Shield is able to remain effective for years without the need for new applications. Facilities have placed protocols to maintain the coatings on a schedule.

Medical and Nursing Facilities Adopted Paint Shield into Their Practices

In 2015, Paint Shield came to the market and was used in thousands of senior care living facilities in the country. The facilities ranged from advanced-care centers to independent living communities. The new trend has helped management create a safer environment both for residents and staff.

The coatings protect against human error. Even trained healthcare professionals can make mistakes and thus infect surfaces, putting patients and co-workers at risk. The constant challenges of working in a facility present situations where sanitation protocols are broken. In a completely unintentional way, someone can forget to wash their hands after touching their face and then touching a surface.

It is likely that during food service Staph and E. coli are spread, two of the most common environmental pathogens that are passed along to patients. These pathogens can become serious for some people, especially the elderly population with compromised immune systems. However, pathogens resistant to antibiotics such as MRSA and VRE present a different challenge.

Where Can Paint Shield Be Used?

The possibilities are endless for Pain Shield. Various locations are perfect for its use including:

1. Kitchens and Food Prep Areas

When food is prepared inside the facility and served to residents, it creates many opportunities or contamination usually from E. coli and Staph. Food poisoning can become deadly, it is a serious issue. Symptoms include diarrhea and vomiting, even where only a minimal amount of contamination occurred. Anti-microbial coatings allow for easier management of pathogens.

2. Storage Rooms in Medical Facilities

Areas that are utilized for medication storage are great candidates for Paint Shield. Patients are given medications, sometimes multiple times per day, which increases the chances for cross-contamination. The areas are kept at a particular temperature and display the most organized and clean environment. Using coatings in these types of rooms helps prevent cross-contamination.

3. Areas Utilized by Staff Members

Any are where people roam is a good candidate for Paint Shield. Staff members spend a lot of time in the facility, therefore, areas exclusively for them exist where they can gather, rest, shower, change, and eat.

Making microbicidal paint part of the policies of the facility creates a safer environment. Staff can make a difference with each practice they have towards safety. Coatings are considered passive methods but are very practical. They can be powerful tools in addition to other safety measures.

How Can a Facility Start Using Paint Shield?

Facility managers are supported by a team of professionals who are dedicated to creating safer environments for their customers. Commercial painters are knowledgeable about these coatings and trained to guide you at every step. It is especially important now with the COVID-19 pandemic that you, as a manager, remain ahead of the curve.

J Canabe Painting in Lyndhurst NJ is an experienced team of commercial painters that help you understand the whole process of converting your place into an environment that controls pathogens. Call us today at (201) 804-7600 to schedule your free estimate today.