As drug-resistant strains of bacteria and viruses continue to arise, St. Mary’s Health Care System is taking an innovative step to help protect patients from infection: the Athens hospital is the first in Northeast Georgia to use powerful ultraviolet radiation to sterilize surgical suites, isolation rooms and other areas of the hospital.

Ultraviolet light is the same kind of light that causes sunburns and skin cancer. Just as UV damages the DNA inside human cells, it damages the DNA inside germs. This damages makes it impossible for germs to reproduce. By combining the Clorox OptimumUV system with traditional deep cleaning and disinfection, St. Mary’s is able to eliminate more than 99.9 percent of drug-resistant organisms on surfaces, says infection prevention and control manager Doug Blomberg, RN.

“We use the system in our surgical suites and isolation rooms, plus anywhere else it’s needed,” Blomberg says. “We already have extremely low rates of hospital-acquired infections, but since the UV system works on all germs – even those that are drug-resistant – it can help us continue to keep our rates low.”

Numerous drug-resistant organisms have arisen in recent years. These are germs that have evolved defenses against antibiotics and cleansers. Well-known examples include MSRA – a bacterium that is resistant to all forms of penicillin – and Clostridium difficile (“C-diff”), a spore-forming bacterium that causes severe gastrointestinal illness and can live on surfaces for months. In addition to being resistant to antibiotics, C-diff spores are also resistant to chemical cleansers.

But none of them are resistant to the genetic damaged caused by UV rays. Nor can they develop resistance to UV rays as they can to drugs, Blomberg says. Even when bacteria retreat into hard shells or viruses transform into a crystalized state, their genetic material can still be inactivated by UV rays.

For an added level of confidence, the OptimumUV system uses a form of ultraviolet light that life on earth has not had to evolve defenses against. As sunscreen users know, there are two forms of ultraviolet radiation that get through the earth’s atmosphere and cause sunburns – UV-A and UV-B. But there is also a third form, UV-C, that is blocked by our planet’s ozone layer. This is the form used by the Optimum system.

 “It’s vitally important that we prevent the spread of germs inside the hospital,” Blomberg says. “Our patients depend on us to ensure that infectious agents don’t have a chance to move from one patient to another. When we zap the rooms, we can have a higher level of confidence that we’re doing everything possible to protect our patients.”

At St. Mary’s, the primary use of the OptimumUV system is in the terminal cleaning of each surgical room, says Environmental Services Director Renzo Medrano. This is the deep cleaning that each operating room receives at the end of the day. First, the room is cleaned using standard procedures, including wiping down all surfaces with a chemical disinfectant. Then, the OptimumUV machine is brought into the room and activated. After a pre-determined exposure time based on the size of the room, usually 5-10 minutes, the unit shuts off. The technician then repositions it and turns it on again to ensure complete saturation of the room with UV light, even under tables and behind equipment.

“We use it to provide an additional layer of sanitation for everything in the room, from ceiling to floor,” Medrano says. “We especially want to capture high-touch areas such as bed railings, phones and call buttons. The system is a great asset and a wonderful investment in patient safety.”

St. Mary’s acquired two OptimumUV units, Medrano notes. One is dedicated to the hospital’s surgical suites. The other “floats” to other areas of the hospital. One of those is the Emergency Department, in which every room receives UV treatment once a week. In addition, every isolation room is treated between patients, and other patient rooms, public restrooms and waiting areas are treated on a rotating basis.

Medrano and Blomberg note that while the machine is simple to use and highly effective, its UV rays are potentially damaging to people. As a result, it can’t be used in an occupied room and the technician operating it must leave the room while it is in operation.

St. Mary’s began using the UV system late last year in conjunction with a number of new strategies aimed at preventing hospital-acquired infections.

“We’ve seen significant reductions in our already low infection rates,” Blomberg says. “For the last few years, our infection rates have been better than national averages, and we are working to continue making progress. The OptimumUV system is an important part of that effort."