āHealthcare facilities should have environmental infection control procedures in place to prevent infections from spreading during healthcare delivery. Environmental infection control procedures, such as waste management, laundry, food service, and environmental cleaning, should align with the CDC's Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Patients with Confirmed 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) or Persons Under Investigation for 2019-nCoV in Health Care Settings.
For persons under investigation and patients managed with transmission-based isolation precautions for COVID-19, the CDC recommends the following environmental infection control measures:
- Dedicated medical equipment should be used for patient care.
- All non-dedicated, non-disposable medical equipment used for patient care should be cleaned and disinfected according to manufacturer's instructions and facility policies.
- Ensure that environmental cleaning and disinfection procedures are followed consistently and correctly.
- Routine cleaning and disinfection procedures (e.g., using cleaners and water to pre-clean surfaces prior to applying an EPA-registered, hospital-grade disinfectant to frequently touched surfaces or objects for appropriate contact times as indicated on the product's label) are appropriate for COVID-19 in healthcare settings, including those patient-care areas in which aerosol-generating procedures are performed.
- Products with EPA-approved emerging viral pathogens claims are recommended for use against COVID-19.
- If there are no available EPA-registered products that have an approved emerging viral pathogen claim for COVID-19 (at the facility), products with label claims against human coronaviruses should be used according to label instructions.
- Management of laundry, food service utensils, and medical waste should also be performed in accordance with routine procedures.
Refer to the CDC's Guidelines for Environmental Infection Control in Heatlh-Care Facilities and Guideline for Isolation Precautions: Preventing Transmission of Infectious Agents in Healthcare Settings for detailed information on environmental infection control. For the most recent COVID-19 information and guidance, please visit the CDC's Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) webpage.
If you have any questions regarding the infection prevention and control of COVID-19, please contact the CDPH Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAI) Program at novelvirus@cdph.ca.gov.
Sincerely,
Original signed by Heidi W. Steinecker
Heidi W. Steinecker
Deputy Director
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