Cleaning radiator guards
With cleaning required every 48 hours, access to the area behind a radiator guard must be immediate and simple.
Pendock SafeHeat guards are available with Easi-Clean access panels mounted at the front, allowing full access to the inside of the guard without the need to remove it completely from the wall.
The lightweight panels are fitted with high security locking bolts, which can only be removed with a purpose made key. With a quarter twist, the bolt is freed allowing a panel to be removed within seconds.
This innovative design feature has been developed in conjunction with a number of major NHS Health Authorities, to make guarded radiators easier and faster to clean without compromising safety.
Pendock SafeHeat radiator guards are the only guards certified by BSRIA to meet the NHSE guidelines when installed to the recommended installation instructions.
Superbugs
Studies have shown that at any one time approximately 9% of hospital patients are suffering from a hospital acquired infection. This increases their length of stay, and can lead to serious complications or death. The House of Commons public accounts committee says up to 5,000 patients die from a hospital-acquired infection every year, costing the NHS £1 billion. The most dangerous forms of hospital acquired infection can be caused by Superbugs, particularly strains of bacteria such as MRSA.
What is mrsa?
MRSA (Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus) is a form of SA (Staphylococcus aureus). SA are the commonest type of bacteria which can infect humans present in approximately one third us.
What problems can it cause?
Usually SA cause no problems. If they do, the resulting infection is usually trivial and affects the skin, resulting in infected cuts or boils that are easily treated. SA is more of a threat to hospital patients with deep wounds, catheters or drips that allow bacteria to enter the body.
People with severely reduced resistance to infection are more vulnerable. The resulting infections can be serious for example septicaemia or pneumonia.
What is special about mrsa?
MRSA acts in exactly the same way as SA and causes the same range of infections. Most people who have it come to no harm at all.
What makes MRSA different is its resistance to antibiotics. Some antibiotics are effective but they may be more difficult to use and cause side effects. The spread of MRSA in hospitals is a cause for concern and patients with MRSA may be isolated from other patients.
How long has mrsa been present?
MRSA is not a new problem - the strains which can cause outbreaks in hospitals first appeared in the early 1960s. In some countries where antibiotics are available more freely, the spread of MRSA has been accepted as inevitable. In the UK there continues to be a focus on prevention and control.
How is spread of mrsa prevented?
Scrupulous hand washing by hospital staff before and after contact with patients and before any procedure is the single most important infection control measure. It is most likely to prevent the spread of MRSA from one patient to another, or from a patient to a member of staff who may subsequently pass the bacterium on to other patients.
Poor hospital hygiene practices are thought by many to contribute to the problem, and in July 2000 the Government launched a £60m drive to improve cleanliness. The National Standards of Cleanliness for the NHS - April 2001, published by NHSE, require that "internal and external walls and ceilings are free of dust, grit, lint, soil, film and cobwebs" and suggests that all areas in high and medium risk zones are cleaned at least every 48 hours.
Cleaning radiator guards
Radiator guards cover walls, but don't prevent dust and dirt reaching them. With cleaning required every 48 hours, access to the area behind a radiator guard must be immediate and simple.
Pendock guards are available with patented Easi-Clean* access panels mounted at the front, allowing full access to the inside of the guard without the need to remove it completely from the wall.
The lightweight panels are fitted with high security locking bolts, which can only be removed with a purpose made key. With a quarter twist, the bolt is freed allowing a panel to be removed within 15 seconds.
This innovative design feature has been developed in conjunction with a number of major NHS Health Authorities, to make guarded radiators easier and faster to clean without compromising safety.
Pendock Radiator guards are the only guards certified by BSRIA to meet the NHSE guidelines when installed as per our instructions.
For more information on the NHS plan to improve cleanliness in the health sector visit:
Clean Hospitals