HAIs are an enormous problem for hospitals.  They affect more than 1.7 million patients and cost U.S. hospitals over $30 billion annually.  We all know that surface contamination is a major contributing factor to the rate of HAIs, so why can't we get the surfaces disinfected and free from pathogens?

 C. difficile is the most challenging issue for Hospital EVS and Infection Control. C.diff infections have increased 400% during the last decade to 500,000 infections with an estimated 30,000 deaths per year in the United States. Many of the patients acquire C.diff during a hospital stay. The rate of C.difficile acquisition is estimated to be 13% in patients with hospital stays of up to two weeks, and 50% for those staying more than four weeks.

So what are the best practices for killing C.diff in the hospital environment?

 

Sporicidal Solutions Cost Analysis

The most commonly used products to fight C.diff include NaDCC chemistry with disposable cellulose wipes, bleach, and PAA (paracetic acid). Below is our cost analysis of these common chemistries as a sporicidal solution.

Product Cost	NaDCC with Disposable Cellulose Wipe	9000 ppm Bleach with Reusable Microfiber Wipe	Pre-saturated Bleach Wipe	PAA with Reusable Microfiber
Laundering/per wipe	none	$0.12 to $0.16 each	none	$0.12 to $0.16 each
Purchase/per use (amortized)	$0.07 to $0.09 each	$0.05 to $0.10 each	$0.22 to $0.30 each	$0.05 to $0.10 each
Chemical/per wipe	$0.04 each	$0.04 each	none	$0.01 each
Total/per pre-saturated wipe	$0.11 to $0.13 each	$0.21 to $0.30 each	$0.22 to $0.30 each	$0.33 to $0.42 each

 

Clinical Wipe Solutions Cost Comparison

The cost of wipes is relatively equal from one chemistry to another. However the number of wipes required per application to achieve effective contact time also varies adding to the cost. When the number of wipes is considered, AHP has the lowest cost at $0.07 per application versus bleach at $0.10, Quat at $0.34 and Quat alcohol at $0.40 per application. If the costs of PPE (personal pretective equipment) is added to the analysis, it further confirms the cost effectiveness of AHP wipes.

Product Cost	Quat Alcohol (Super SeniCloth wipes)	Quat (AF3 wipes)	Bleach (Clorox Germicidal Bleach wipes)	AHP (Oxivir TB wipes)
Cost/wipe	$0.06	$0.06	$0.10	$0.07
Wipes required to achive contact time	5	4	1	1
Total/per application	$0.30	$0.24	$0.10	$0.07
PPE/per aplication	$0.10	$0.10	$0.20	$0.0
Total/per pre-saturated wipe	$0.40	$0.34	$0.30	$0.07