The Department of Health rapid review panel have assessed new products for cleaning, disinfection and decontamination that have been designed to help in the fight against healthcare associated infections.

The rapid review panels assessment says that “SystemSURE Plus is an ATP monitoring system, which comprises a handheld luminometer and swabs. It works through collection and quantification of ATP remaining in organic residues post cleaning. The basic research and development, validation and recent in use evaluations have shown benefits that should be available to NHS bodies to include as appropriate in their cleaning, hygiene or infection control protocols. (Recommendation 1)”

SystemSURE Plus from Hygiena International provides a rapid objective test of cleanliness and detects invisible contamination in seconds. It has several applications for management and training purposes as well as providing assurance that cleaning has been done to the best possible standard.

ATP bioluminescence technology is well established and has more than thirty years of proven use across several industries. The SystemSURE Plus ATP detection systems are being used in more than 300 hospitals for several applications including as a post-cleaning verification and monitoring tool from wards to sterile service departments and catering facilities. It is also a very good training and awareness tool for hand hygiene. It is simple and easy to use by non-technical staff anywhere. Most importantly it has provided an objective yardstick to yield quantitative numerical data about cleaning levels attained.

Cleaning can work on a number of different levels and vary in standards. This can range from general tidiness to absolute sterility. Previously, the NHS has relied on good training and the use of visual assessment to determine whether a surface is clean. However, dependence on observational data for cleaning efficacy is subjective, of questionable validity and does not provide quantifiable data. The revised edition of the NHS Cleaning Manual now recognises the importance of ATP bioluminescence and how it can assist the daily monitoring of cleaning practice and ensure higher standards are reached.

The SystemSURE Plus can now make invisible contamination visible, and generate rapid meaningful information to enable managers to monitor the delivery of cleaning services and ensure value for money.