Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English en
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

Sink-related cleaning practices to prevent transmission of pathogens in healthcare settings

Project description

Environmentally friendly method for cleaning hospital sinks

Millions of infections occur in hospitals each year, with water sources being a major contributor. Current cleaning practices may fail to prevent infections and could harm patients by altering bacterial populations. Moreover, reliance on chemical disinfectants poses ecological risks. Supported by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the SELECTION project will develop an environmentally friendly method for cleaning hospital sinks. The method will first be optimised under controlled conditions, then tested in a hospital setting and compared with existing cleaning practices. The study will include interviews with healthcare workers involved in implementing the cleaning interventions. Bacterial levels in sinks will be measured, and metagenomics will be used to analyse how different methods affect microbial populations.

Objective

Each year, millions of infections are acquired in healthcare facilities. The hospital water environment (including sinks, showers and toilets) are now recognised as important environmental drivers of these infections- many of which can be prevented by hygiene and infection control measures, including effective cleaning. However, the most effective methods of cleaning the hospital water enviroment are still not known, so current practices may not prevent infections. Concerningly, recent evidence has emerged suggesting that current practices may inadvertently alter the bacterial population in these environmental reservoirs- potentially causing harm to patients. Furthermore, current practices rely on the widespread use of chemical disinfectants, which have ecological and environmental consequences. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions programme, SELECTION will develop a novel and environmentally considerate method for hospital sink cleaning. SELECTION will first optimise this method under controlled experimental conditions. A study will then be undertaken in a hospital setting to compare this novel approach with current cleaning practices. To understand the effectiveness of these interventions, we will measure the amount of bacteria present in sinks when cleaned with these different methods, and also use metagenomics and bioinformatics approaches to charecterise how different cleaning interventions change the microbial population within these reservoirs. We will interview healthcare workers involved in the implementation of cleaning interventions in the hospital (including cleaning staff, healthcare engineers and infection prevention and control specialists) to understand their perceptions of the novel intervention and outline the roadmap and barriers to implementation in healthcare settings beyond this research study. SELECTION will inform hospital cleaning strategies and infection prevention and control practices.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

You need to log in or register to use this function

Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships

See all projects funded under this funding scheme

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2024-PF-01

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

THE CHANCELLOR, MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 276 187,92
Address
WELLINGTON SQUARE UNIVERSITY OFFICES
OX1 2JD Oxford
United Kingdom

See on map

Region
South East (England) Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Oxfordshire
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

No data

Partners (1)

My booklet 0 0