Health Supplies Website Touts Vinyl for Hospitals

Lawrence, KA, December 26, 2007--Vinyl flooring is being touted as a way to prevent the spread of infections in hospitals by the website Healthcare Equipment and Supplies.

According to the website, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 100,000 people die each year from infections contracted in healthcare facilities.

A recent study by the Coalition of Health Environments Research found that impervious surfaces like vinyl, that are easily cleaned and maintained, play a key role in infection-control strategies.

The cleanliness of floors is particularly important, according to Nina Shik, infection control manager at the University of Kansas Hospital.

Sheet vinyl flooring was chosen for all intensive care and operating rooms in the new wing of White Memorial Hospital in East Los Angeles, California. Vice president Albert Deininger said vinyl was also chosen for utility rooms and environmental services closets – “everywhere you don’t want seams that gather dirt.”

The nonporous vinyl sheet flooring was heat welded to create a seamless surface and had coved corners to keep dirt from collecting where the walls meet the floor. Staining is the biggest challenge to keeping floors clean in treatment areas, he said, and vinyl flooring repels both stains and odors better than other materials.

Because vinyl flooring is nonporous, spills and water can be quickly mopped up and moisture does not sink into the floor, where it can be a breeding ground for bacteria and mold, said Bill Freeman of the Resilient Floor Covering Institute in Rockville.

Vinyl is also preferred for flooring in medical facilities because it resists indentation from rolling carts, beds or standing equipment, he added.

Microbiologist John Heinze, head of the Environmental Health Research Foundation, said that cleanliness is the key to curbing infection in any environment, “and vinyl is simply easier to keep clean than most materials used on floors.”