EcoMed Disposable Privacy Curtains: Reducing the Chance of Secondary Infection

No matter the reason for hospital admission, it can be scary and leave you feeling vulnerable. Privacy curtains are a neat and simple way of partitioning areas throughout health care facilities. These curtains provide a semiprivate space helping to maintain a patient’s dignity and modesty. They are often made from fabric and are handled frequently by staff, patients and visitors. Despite staff and visitors being encouraged to use hand sanitiser, there is an ever-present threat in hospitals of secondary infections.

Researchers shows that 42% of hospital privacy curtains contain potentially harmful bacteria that can contaminate traditional fabric curtains, leading to growing concerns of cross-contamination of bacteria and viruses. Fabric curtains can be taken down and thoroughly cleaned, which is time-consuming and costly. After washing, these fabric curtains need to be treated with fire retardant to meet strict government guidelines, possibly adding to the costs.

Evidence shows that disposable microbial hospital privacy curtains play an important role in reducing environmental contamination. Adding to their increasing popularity, disposable microbial curtains can be used in any area where conventional fabric curtains have been used.

Areas and situations that are ideal for the use of these curtains include:

• Trauma centres
• Isolation rooms
• Intensive care units
• Emergencies (pandemic or natural disaster preparedness)
• Endoscopy centres
• General Ward Areas

To provide a positive solution to the potential contamination of fabric curtains, Midmed is happy to present EcoMed disposable curtains treated with 3rd generation Ultra Fresh built-in microbial protection that is nontoxic, non-bleaching and non-depleting, helping prevent hospital acquired infections. Unlike chemical spray alternatives, the Ultra Fresh active additives are built into the polymer structure of the non-woven fabric during manufacturing. The antibacterial agent is distributed evenly throughout the curtain and is effective for the lifetime of the curtain, which is 2 years. The EcoMed disposable curtain is fire retardant and complies with British, American and Australian standards for conventional polyester cubical curtains.

Fabric curtains have a huge impact on the hospital’s laundry bill with every load taking an enormous amount of water, detergent and energy to launder to standards. This task may need to be carried out three times a year. The environmental impact of this practice also needs to be considered with increased water and power usage. The EcoMed disposal curtain provides a cost-effective solution with each curtain able to be used for the entirety of its two-year life.

In comparison to fabric curtains, the EcoMed disposable curtain offers:

• Low purchase cost
• No laundry cost
• No capital outlay for curtains
• No maintenance cost

An EcoMed disposable curtain is made from 100% non-woven polypropylene and is 100% recyclable, nonclinical waste. When it comes time to replace your EcoMed curtains it can be done safely and environmentally soundly.

EcoMed has done a lot of work with their hook design. The hooks have been designed to be fully compatible with established popular tracks. The EcoMed curtain weighs far less than a conventional curtain, assisting with a quick and easy installation, typically completed in under 60 seconds.

Curtains play a role in any clinical situation whether it is decreasing the risk of infection, improving the mood of a patient by transforming a cold clinical space to a warmer, more welcoming one, or providing a space to maintain a patient’s dignity. The benefits of the EcoMed disposable curtain are clear. If you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to contact one of our friendly staff members at Midmed.