Tips For Controlling Odour and Infection In Care Homes

Unpleasant smells are associated with unpleasant things.

Whether you’re at home, at work or a guest elsewhere, a foul odour is generally a sign that something isn’t quite right.

What’s causing it? Why has it been allowed to happen? Doesn’t anybody care?

In a care home setting, bad odour gives an instantly poor impression to visitors – not to mention being unpleasant for residents and staff, making it difficult to feel comfortable and content.

For this reason, families are unlikely to choose your care home to provide a service to a loved one if it smells bad. It could be indicative of poor management, poor care and poor staffing – none of which hold any appeal.

Furthermore, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) insist on high levels of cleanliness and infection control, stating that “premises and equipment should be visibly clean and free from odours that are offensive or unpleasant.”[1]

A care home that smells unpleasant, therefore, could end up with a poor CQC rating – and a poor reputation to match.

Ultimately, bad smells are often a result of bacteria – it’s nature’s warning signal.

A care home that smells bad is likely to be experiencing an issue with controlling bacteria, exposing everyone in the facility to dangerous illnesses. Therefore, it’s in everyone’s best interest to keep odour under control.

Don’t risk an inadequate CQC rating.

DDC Dolphin can help you demonstrate outstanding quality of care.

Carer and care home residents

How can unpleasant odours in care homes be prevented?

The first step is often the proper management of continence issues.

Even if you think your standards are high, bad smells can often linger – so it pays to be meticulous, predominantly by ensuring that you have enough staff available to provide timely personal care.

Many unpleasant odours can also be prevented before they occur. This is achieved by:

Helping residents to achieve good personal hygiene
Having help readily available if a resident is in difficulty
Washing hands and wearing protective clothing that can be disposed of
Preventing infections that can cause widespread illness.

Masking smells is not recommended.

Aerosols, in particular, can cause negative physical reactions such as asthma and allergies – and they don’t stop the root of the problem. Bacteria will still be in the air, potentially causing illness and ultimately contributing to a vicious cycle.

Airborne and surface bacteria can be efficiently removed with air purification.

The UVMATIC from DDC Dolphin helps to resolve persistent odour problems by destroying bacteria in the air and on surfaces.

Destroying viruses including flu, E. coli, salmonella and streptococcus, UVMATIC uses UV and ozone technology to combat malodours and prevent dangerous illnesses from spreading in your care home.

Working for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, UVMATIC will provide total support to your existing infection control regime – but without any additional support required from your busy care staff.

You needn’t worry about excessive electricity use, either; an UVMATIC air purifier has similar running costs to a low energy lightbulb, with minimal maintenance required to keep it running at its optimum.