If you work in a hospital, is it vital to know how to clean blood spills in hospital? The health risks associated with cleaning blood or other bodily fluids can be incredibly dangerous. Blood can carry very harmful and infectious pathogens such as viral hepatitis and HIV. If blood spills are handled incorrectly, there are high chances of exposing yourself to such pathogens.

Unfortunately, blood spills happen more often than we’d like to admit, both at home and in medical settings. There are certain times when the safest thing to do is leave the cleaning to the professionals. A lot goes into cleaning blood, and the trickiest thing about it is that blood tends to seep deep into fabrics or hide in hard-to-reach places, exposing everyone to serious risks.

Below is a comprehensive guide on how to clean blood spills in hospital

Cleaning Blood Spills- Equipment Checklist

Cleaning blood spills and other body substances may require specialized equipment to prevent exposure to hazardous pathogens. Most places like healthcare facilities where blood spills are common have a management system in place for dealing with bodily fluids. This includes procedural manuals and a pre-assembled spills kit.

Most types of spills can be cleaned safely using the equipment recommended by most Health Organizations for Bloodborne Pathogen Cleanup Kit, which includes:

• Personal protective equipment (PPE), including disposable rubber gloves, face mask, protective gown/apron, eye protection, hearing protection, protective cap, and appropriate footwear
• Absorbent materials like kitty litter or sand
• Proof-leak bag and container to dispose of waste material
• Disinfecting towels and disposable paper towels
• Scoop and tongs/forceps
• Biohazard bag with a zip tie
• Brush and dustpan
• Registered disinfectant products with an effective broad-spectrum kill claim

Note: Single-use or disposable tools in a spills kit must be replaced after every use of the kit. Blood or bodily spills must be cleaned up completely before the area is washed. Note that adding water or any liquids to the spills will increase their size, and it should be avoided. It’s also important that the affected area is left to dry completely before using it.

Cleaning Blood Spills- Procedures

Blood spills in a hospital are quite common. For instance, a laboratory sample can accidentally break during transportation, or a patient can bleed excessively during a procedure. In such a situation, you’re advised to assume that the blood is infected with a dangerous infectious pathogen. Besides having the right cleaning equipment, you must also learn to use them properly for maximum protection.

Below is a comprehensive procedure on how to clean blood spills in a hospital:

PRE-TASKs

• Wear the protective equipment indicated above. If you have any cuts or abrasions on your hands, ensure they are covered with an occlusive waterproof dressing.
• Alert others within the area of the spill and isolate the place appropriately.
• Obtain the spills kit and ensure you have all the equipment mentioned above, including household bleach, detergent, mop, and bucket.

THE CLEANING PROCESS

• Eliminate as much of the sharp materials like broken glass as possible with the tongs/forceps and carefully place them in a sharps container.
• Important notes: Sharp objects should not be picked with your hands, and they must not be placed in the regular waste container. If the sharp material is too big to fit in the sharps container, wrap it in multiple layers of paper and discard it carefully in a different container.
• Clean up the blood spill and other bodily fluids with disposable paper towels
• Clean the area thoroughly with water and detergent.
• Use hospital-grade or registered disinfectant to sanitize the entire area.
• Dry the area completely with disposable paper towels. Keep in mind that wet areas tend to attract contaminants.

POST-TASKS

• Ensure that items like tongs, forceps, scissors, and tweezers are cleaned with running water, dried completely, and disinfected with a registered disinfectant product with a broad spectrum kill claim before reassembling them in the kit.
• Other re-usable items like mops, dustpans, brooms, and buckets should also be cleaned and disinfected.
• All contaminated items, including cleaning cloths, paper towels/tissues and wipes, dressings, and blood, should be disposed of in a suitably labeled bag and put in an appropriate biohazard container or a sanitary waste bin.
• Sharp material should be disposed of in the appropriate sharps container.
• Remove gloves, discard them and wash your hands thoroughly with running water and soap. After a vigorous hand washing, dry them completely with a single-use paper towel and sanitize them with an alcohol-based sanitizer.
• Do a thorough inspection of your body for any signs of contamination. Confirm that there are no blood stains on your clothes or any part of your body. Any direct contact or exposure to the blood spills must be reported immediately and recorded in the incident book.

Cleaning Small Blood Spills

Cleaning small spills or blood spots, measuring approximately 10 cm, can effeciently be done by wiping the area immediately with appropriate paper towels. This should be followed by thoroughly cleaning the spot with warm water and detergent. Next, you’ll need to rinse and dry the area completely and then use a registered hospital-grade disinfectant to disinfect.

Cleaning Blood Spills On Carpet

It can be a bit challenging to clean bodily fluids on carpets because they are absorbent. Technically, you cannot disinfect carpets, and if you must use a disinfectant, you should be certain that it has little to no colour, as coloured disinfectants can stain carpets.

In addition, most products in the spills kit are generally used to clean hard, non-porous surfaces. So, you may need to go the extra mile to clean blood spills on carpets. Note that blood and bodily fluids can harden quickly on carpeting, so you need to work quickly.

• Wear personal protective equipment and isolate the area with the blood spill to prevent it from spreading further.
• Cover the spills with multiple absorbent paper towels to prevent exposure to the blood. Carefully wipe as much blood as possible with the paper towels and place the mess in a properly labeled plastic bag.
• Bleach can damage carpets. Hence, the best way to clean the area is by using an approved carpet shampoo with anti-bacterial properties to help sanitize the carpet as much as possible.
• Depending on the size of the spill, it’s generally recommended to perform a steam clean of the carpet. Steam cleaning removes debris while cleaning and sanitizing the carpet more thoroughly than conventional washing.
• Disinfect all re-usable equipment, dispose of all waste, and wash your hands thoroughly as directed above.