Hands-free electronic taps hinder infection control
Johns Hopkins Hospital study shows old-fashioned manual taps work better
A study of newly installed, hands-free taps at the Johns Hopkins Hospital, in Baltimore, MD, US, which are equipped with electronic-eye sensors automatically to detect hands and dispense preset amounts of water, has found that they were more likely to be contaminated with one of the most common and hazardous bacteria in hospitals than old-style fixtures with separate handles for hot and cold water.
“Newer is not necessarily better when it comes to infection control in hospitals, especially when it comes to warding off potential hazards from water-borne bacteria, such as Legionella species,” said Lisa Maragakis, senior study investigator and director of hospital epidemiology and infection control at Hopkins Hospital.
Although the high-tech taps cut daily water consumption by well over 50%, Johns Hopkins researchers identified Legionella growing in 50% of cultured water samples from 20 electronic-eye taps in or near patient rooms on three different in-patient units, but in only 15% of water cultures from 20 traditional taps in the same areas. Weekly water culture results also showed half the amount of bacterial growth of any kind in the manual taps compared with the electronic models.
While the precise reasons for the higher bacterial growth in the electronic taps still need clarification, the researchers say it appears that standard hospital water disinfection methods, which complement treatments by public utilities, did not work well on the complex valve components of the newer taps. They suspect that the valves simply offer additional surfaces for bacteria to become trapped and grow.
Infection control experts behind the study say the electronic devices were widely introduced in patient care and public areas of hospitals across the US, including in The Johns Hopkins Hospital, more than a decade ago. The aim was to prevent bacterial spread from people touching the taps with dirty hands.
As a result of the study, conducted over a seven-week period from December 2008 to January 2009, Johns Hopkins facilities engineers removed all 20 newer faucets from patient care areas and replaced them with manual types.
In addition, 100 similar electronic taps are being replaced throughout the hospital, and the hospital has decided to use traditional fixtures – some 1,080 of them – in all patient care areas in the new clinical buildings currently under construction at Johns Hopkins’ East Baltimore campus. The new buildings are set to open in 2012.