Photo Credit: Kaivac, Inc.
As the fall and winter seasons approach, park and recreation managers are likely going to take additional steps to ensure that their facilities are not only clean but healthy as well. When it comes to small children, who will likely be using these facilities even more in the colder months, the more hygienically clean the facility, the less likely there will be cross-contamination issues, in which child after child becomes infected with the same illness.
However, before beefing up cleaning protocols, astute park and recreation managers are advised to first examine how mops, buckets, and cleaning cloths are used in their facilities. While it is well-known in healthcare facilities and among some in the professional cleaning industry that cleaning tools often contribute to the spread of disease, the cleaning staff in many park and recreation facilities may not be aware of this fact.
How can this be? What if staff members are properly using a powerful EPA-registered disinfectant on surfaces? What if they are properly and frequently cleaning mops and cleaning cloths and changing them regularly? While taking these steps can help minimize the spread of contaminants, they cannot prevent it. And when it comes to protecting children, minimizing the spread of disease may simply not be enough.