Facing up to the Super-K challenge

THE WINTER is a risky time for UK hospitals. Cases of infections and viruses tend to surge during the colder months, and illnesses can spread all too quickly in crowded environments such as hospitals. And any outbreaks could prove serious - even deadly - for patients who are already vulnerable and potentially immuno-compromised.

Different challenges emerge every winter. Cases of COVID-19 spiked during the latter part of 2020 and continued to pose a threat for the next two winters. A major surge in cases of norovirus then occurred during the 2023/24 season. This had a significant impact on several facilities and some - including Hull’s Royal Infirmary and Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge - had to close entire wards as a result.

There are a number of theories as to why infections and viruses tend to spike in winter. One is that people tend to spend more time indoors during the colder months which means they inevitably have closer contact, promoting person-to-person transmission. However, this theory would not explain the reasons why hospital infection rates also spike in the winter where both staff and patients largely remain indoors all year.

Some claim that the higher levels of ultraviolet radiation during the summer could damage or destroy viruses, and that radiation levels naturally decline during the winter. Viruses are also slower to decompose during colder temperatures which means they linger longer on exposed surfaces such as doorknobs and countertops. And cold temperatures lead to drier air which may causes the mucous membranes to dehydrate, preventing the body from effectively defending against respiratory infections.

Super-K strain of flu

The most recent winter threat to our health was the Super-K strain of flu which emerged during the winter of 2025/2026. Super-K is a highly mutated, fast-spreading variant of the illness which caused last year’s flu season to start early and resulted in a massive surge of cases along with more hospitalisations.

The symptoms of Super-K include body aches, extreme fatigue and a high fever –the same symptoms as most other flu strains, in fact. However, Super-K symptomstend to appear more abruptly – sometimes over the course of just a few hours – and can feel much more intense than those of regular flu.

Healthcare chiefs believe the Super-K strain will pose a significant threat to healthonce again this winter, with the vulnerable elderly and the very young being particularly at risk.

The Super-K flu variant features genetic alterations in the protein that binds to human cells allowing it to multiply and spread more effectively than other strains. And the reason why healthcare chiefs are particularly concerned is because we are relatively unfamiliar with this particular mutation and have little natural immunity.

Responding to the threat

The good news is that healthcare chiefs are on the case. A NHS vaccination programme began earlier than usual this year to protect those most at risk. And there is much that people can do to arm themselves against Super-K themselves.

Hand hygiene is the first line of defence for many infections and viruses, so healthcare workers need to be particularly scrupulous in their hand hygiene regimes in order to reduce the risk of cross-contamination between patients. The World Health Organization urges all healthcare workers to adopt its “My Five Moments of Hand Hygiene” guideline which advises all healthcare staff to perform hand hygiene before touching a patient, before carrying out any aseptic procedure and after exposure to body fluids. 

Hand hygiene should also take place after touching a patient or coming into contact with a patient’s surroundings. And the whole washing and drying process should take between 40 and 60 seconds to ensure a thorough cleanse, while hand sanitising with an alcohol-based hand rub should take around 20-30 seconds.

Hospitals need to make this process easy by providing good hand hygiene facilities located close to their likely point of use. All soaps and hand towels need to be kind to the skin since the frequent use of harsh soaps and abrasive towels can cause painful conditions such as occupational dermatitis. Mild soaps, soft towels and a fragrance-free conditioning cream will help to prevent the chapping and soreness caused by frequent hand washing.

Since viruses tend to dwell on surfaces and doorknobs during the winter, cleaning regimes should be rigorous and all patients and visitors should be reminded to keep their hands clean. Hand washing prompts should be prominently displayed in the washrooms and at wash stations so that everyone is made fully aware of the need to wash their hands.

And all hand washing stations should be conveniently located and should never be allowed to run out of soap and paper when an urgent hand wash is needed. 

Training and advice

Good training and reinforcement is also vital to ensure that healthcare workers and cleaners understand the importance of proper cleaning and hygiene. Essity offers a free online hand hygiene training module for healthcare workers. Tork Clean Hands Training invites users into a digital world where they are confronted with a series of scenarios in which hand hygiene needs to be carried out. 

The interactive simulation has been designed to make hand hygiene training more engaging and inspiring. Participants are confronted with a series of real work situations in a virtual world in which they can practice hand hygiene with their own hands. The training has been developed in cooperation with leading international hygiene experts and allows professionals to test their knowledge in a safe, simulative patient environment. They can also receive direct feedback and learn from their mistakes.

Cleaning teams also need to be taught how to effectively clean all patient areas in the most logical and hygienic way to prevent viruses from lingering on surfaces. 

Essity’s Tork Interactive Clean Hospital Training takes staff through various real-world cleaning scenarios, incorporating modules on daily cleaning in occupied patient rooms as well as discharge cleaning protocols. 

The cleaner’s knowledge of high-touch surfaces is tested and various tips and tricks are provided. Operatives are also instructed in the correct cleaning procedures such as the need to work from high to low and to use different cloths for each type of task to reduce the risk of micro-organism transmission.

Hand sanitiser stations act as an important supplement to hand washing and these are now in plentiful supply in many hospitals. However, it is crucial that they are located in places where staff will have immediate access to them and where visitors will notice them. 

Tork offers recommendations on the correct placement of hand sanitisers to maximise their usage and ensure that they are not overlooked.

Awareness of hygiene protocols

The word “flu” has become so familiar to us that it fails to strike the fear in our hearts that other terms such as “COVID” or “ebola” evoke. However, flu is a stealthy killer that claims between 290,000 and 650,000 annual deaths worldwide according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

WHO also claims that proper hand hygiene, when integrated with other critical measures, can prevent up to 50 per cent of avoidable infections acquired in healthcare.

It is therefore crucial that all hospital staff, visitors and patients are encouraged to wash their hands frequently to help ward off the Super-K flu - and are given the right tools to enable them to do so.

Liam Mynes is sales manager at Tork manufacturer Essity

For more information, visit www.tork.co.uk