On behalf of the South Dakota Association of Healthcare Organizations (SDAHO) and South Dakota Foundation of Medical Care (SDFMC), we are excited to share that Governor Kristi Noem has issued a Proclamation in South Dakota declaring the week of March 26 Cleaning Week. We invite you to celebrate those in your facilities that are instrumental to the cleaning and disinfection processes that keep South Dakotans, that you care for and serve, safe from encountering unwanted germs.
Jess Danko, SDFMC Program Manager, shares, “Cleaning and disinfection are an instrumental part of infection control processes that we expect healthcare facilities to implement. The cleaning week proclamation from Governor Noem recognizes the important work that the environmental services play in infection control work in healthcare as well as speaks to the importance of cleaning across all industries. We, at SDFMC and South Dakota Project Firstline, applaud the work that is happening in the South Dakota facilities.”
Although cleaning and disinfection in healthcare is instrumental to the wellbeing of everyone that comes into the healthcare setting, cleaning is a process that must be utilized across many industries. The state of South Dakota and SDFMC has joined International Sanitary Supply Association, the worldwide cleaning industry association, in celebrating National Cleaning Week, March 26-April 1, 2023. The week represents a unique opportunity to celebrate the value of clean, honor fellow cleaning industry professionals, and raise public awareness to the industry ’s commitment to maintaining healthy environments for workers and customers.
Cheri Fast, Healthcare Acquired Infection Program Manager for SDFMC states: the pandemic has demonstrated the essential role that cleaning professionals have on keeping infection rates down. Cleaning and disinfection of surfaces, when combined with hand hygiene, reduces virus concentrations by 85.4%. Cleanliness is an everyday essential. We all have a part in this from our homes to any public spaces.
With spring cleaning on the mind, South Dakota’s Week of Cleaning comes at the perfect time!
If you have questions on how you can get involved, email cheri.fast@sdfmc.org or jess.danko@sdfmc.org
