Water Hygiene In Health Care Settings

When it comes to cold water storage there is a range of factors you need to consider depending on where you are storing your water and what you are storing your water for.

When it comes to health you need to think about water hygiene in health care settings. Many care settings like hospitals, GP practices, care homes and even residential like Granny Annexes need access to clean water. These facilities are being used and frequented often by ill and vulnerable individuals, so you need to make sure that all the water is stored in a safe and clean condition before use.

Why Is Water Hygiene Important?

If a building or facility has poor water hygiene, this can then lead to serious problems. Having unhygienic water can be catastrophic and can lead to the spreading of disease and illness and in some cases, this can even result in death.

If a place or facility needs access to water at all times, then chances are you are using a manmade water storage system to ensure you will always have water no matter what happens. Whilst this can be a huge help for places like hospitals, it can cause problems.

Manmade water systems like water tanks and other water systems, both hot and cold, are used to store and provide water, but they can become contaminated if you are not careful. When one of these manmade storage containers is contaminated, it can lead to serious disease and illness.

A common cause for this illness and disease is something called Legionella, which can infect and contaminate your water supply if you do not use the correct preventative measures.

Legionellosis is a collective term for diseases caused by legionella bacteria. Legionella bacteria can cause all kinds of diseases if it is consumed such as Pontiac fever and Lochgoilhead fever.  Legionnaire’s disease is the most dangerous disease that Legionellosis can cause and can be fatal in some cases.

Why Is Water Hygiene Important in Health Care Settings?

Water hygiene is important in any setting, but it is especially vital that water is kept clean and uncontaminated in health care settings.

Legionellosis can lead to Legionnaire’s disease which is an incredibly serious disease that can affect anyone, but it can be much more dangerous to people with certain issues and factors such as:

• Those who are 45 years of age and older
• People that are smokers and heavy drinkers
• those suffering from chronic respiratory or kidney disease, diabetes, lung and heart disease
• anyone with an impaired immune system.

Unfortunately, these apply to a lot of people staying and being treated in care facilities such as care homes that care for the elderly and those with serious diseases, and hospitals, especially if people are being treated for serious illness or have an illness that leaves them with a weaker immune system.

As diseases are more likely to spread and be fatal within these health care settings, it is vital that every precaution is made so that the water you provide is clean, uncontaminated and most importantly that your water storage is compliant with the Laws and Regulations For Building Water Hygiene In The UK.

If your cold water storage does not fit these laws and regulations or if there have been no precautions taken to keep the water safe, then your water supply may be unfit for use, especially in the health care setting.

You need to make sure that all your water is safe for consumption and free of and contamination or risk of contamination. The best way to do this is to have a water hygiene risk assessment carried out by a water hygiene professional, such as Cold Water Storage. This way you can be sure that the water in your health care facility is safe, and if it isn’t, you can talk to the water hygiene professional about what to do next and how they can help.

Help From A Water Treatment Specialist

Cold Water Storage is a specialist water hygiene contractor with extensive experience in the water hygiene and Legionella industry.

We carry out professional Legionella risk assessments and provide water treatment services to ensure you are compliant with all water hygiene rules and regulations.

Our core services also include the repair, reline, replacement or installation of cold water tanks.

If you would like to find out more about how Cold Water Storage can help you comply with building water hygiene regulations, get in touch.