Another important location is a toilet. In a typical aged care facility, when we look into the area such as toilet, we see the use of variety of support items such as bags for pooping, mobile commode chair, catheter for urination. If see normal physiology of human, urine in the bladder of a healthy person is free from microorganisms so there is a reduced risk of airborne particles and cross contamination in urination. However human gut is the place where the greatest number and variety of microorganisms are normally present in human body. c These particles can stay in the air for several hours. To cover toilet bowl when flushing is advisable or be mindful when private business is flushed.
Human faeces can carry a wide range of transmissible pathogens i.e. Campylobacter, Enterococcus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella, Shigella, Staphylococcus, Streptococcus and Yersinia bacteria etc. etc. Also, faeces can carry viruses such as norovirus, rotavirus and hepatitis A and E etc. etc.
Furthermore, water under a toilet’s rim can form a biofilm. It can take only 24-48 hours for colonies to start breeding. You will see a biofilm what looks like black debris or rings inside the bowl. Likewise, mold can also grow which can cause respiratory problems for people as it can release tiny spores into the air.
Wiping after nature’s call is also important in cross contamination. We need to avoid touching inside toilet bowl while wiping. Some seats on toilet bowl have a gap at the front, which is good. This gap allows specially to women to wipe the perineal area after using the toilet without contacting the seat. Wiping in women should be from front to back and not back to front. Back to front wiping increases the risk of getting Urinary Tract Infection from own faecal residue.
Even if we are not touching the toilet surface, flushing with open lid directs inside particles, shooting up to three feet in the air. And that invisible fountain of gross contains bacteria, viruses that could lead to an infection. Toilet bowl had shown one million to three million bacteria as per some studies performed. In some studies it showed up to 1000 bacteria per square inch.
Toilet bowl cleaning brushes are another source of heavy load of microorganisms. These brushes keep your toilet clean, but can host a lot of bacteria and viruses. Care should be taken when cleaning the bowl to avoid cross contamination. Toilet brushes should be replaced every six months, though experts suggest replacing toilet brushes with disposable gloves and cloth i.e. you need to go inside the toilet bowl with gloved hands and clean it with disposable cloth. For sanitisation of toilet brush, submerge brush in chlorine bleach for at least 10 minutes. Discard the bleach after use in toilet bowl.
If we talk about sexually transmitting diseases (STD), some STD can be picked up from contact with damp or moist objects, such as toilet seats, if the genital area is in contact with the damp object.
Studies say that E. coli can be found within six feet of the toilet and also inside the sink, which indicate possible faecal contamination. To avoid infection, we should disinfect the toilet and sink at least once weekly, and the bathtub every two weeks, or more if we use it more often. For sanitisation of toilet sink, after cleaning, wipe it with chlorine bleach and leave it for at least 10 minutes. Rinse it with clean water after 10 minutes.
Toilet bowl can be disinfected after cleaning with 1/2 cup chlorine bleach. You need to pour the bleach in bowl in such a way that it pours by covering all top surface. Let it stand for ten minutes after pouring it into the bowl. ¼ cub of borax can also be used for cleaning and disinfection by adding it in the bowl for overnight.