Painting a picture of health
February 1st 2009 Albany Washrooms says its mission is to raise the standard of Britain's washrooms.As
well as keeping businesses informed, the company is now working with education
campaigns that teach children about proper hygiene
The recent outbreak of norovirus, coupled with an
early start to the flu season, have seen the closure
of more than 50 hospital wards and a number of
schools throughout the country. Norovirus, also known
as the winter vomiting bug, is more prevalent in January
and February and affects between 600,000 and one
million people every year. Outbreaks are most common
within contained environments such as hospitals,
nursing homes and schools.
"As with most illnesses prevention is
better than the cure," says Mike Burton,
MD of Albany Washroom Services. "Intensive deep
cleaning and effective hand hygiene can help
prevent the spread of disease and reduce the
potential contamination risks to other people.
"Washrooms are a breeding ground for germs
such as protozoa and parasitic worms, which can be
transferred by hand to hand contact.
"Coliforms found in faeces, contain germs that
thrive in unclean environments. In 2006, it cost the UK economy £4
billion in lost productivity through avoidable illness, according to the
Confederation of British Industry. And just because you can't see the
germs doesn't mean that they aren't there."
Albany is now working with Max4Health, to help educate children
on the importance of good hand hygiene.Max, an animated cartoon
character, was the brainchild of Ashley Brooks, who contracted MRSA
while being treated for leukemia. Brooks almost died as a result of the
superbug and went on to develop a hygiene campaign around
cartoon Max, including stickers, badges, interactive games and DVDs.
Albany has also teamed up with Bog Standard, the campaign that
works for better toilets for school pupils, to develop new guidelines
for schools on cleaning and deep cleaning to help them improve
their facilities. It is hoped that the new guidelines, expected to be
available nationally by spring 2009, will help reduce schools' sickness
levels by preventing the spread of infection.
"We are keen to work with people who have the same passion and
commitment that we at Albany have for raising the
standards of washrooms and educating people
about the importance of good hand hygiene,"
explains Burton."Plenty of people talk about it but
we want to really do something about it and make a
difference. If people could see the effects of poorly
designed and maintained washrooms they would be
horrified."
Albany has developed a three minute film that
uses brightly coloured paints to demonstrate how
poor hand hygiene and inadequate cleaning and maintenance can
lead to cross contamination in washrooms. "Improving the standards
of washrooms can only be good for businesses and organisations,"
says Burton. "Effective washroom design, maintenance and
education can help reduce costs and the impact of days lost to
illness. I hope more people will join us on our mission."
To view the film please visit
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