Many of the nation’s hospitals have yet to develop a protocol for proper cleaning and disinfection of keyboards which are now ubiquitous in hospital clinical environments. Over the last decade, most US hospitals and medical facilities have adopted electronic medical records (EMR) which facilitates the need for thousands of keyboards in emergency departments, ICUs, patient rooms, nursing stations and isolation areas. Many of these facilities have yet to adopt sealed waterproof keyboards specifically designed for these environments and can hold up to the gold standard of terminal cleaning, using a 1:10 ratio of bleach to water for disinfection. These issues are exasperated in a situation like Ebola which in late stages is characterized as having an above normal amount of blood, vomit and bodily fluids associated with it and easily transmitted in advanced stages.
Plastic open style keyboards trap bio-loads (blood, urine, mucus, vomit, etc.) between keys and seams and under the key caps allowing for only surface disinfection. So called “antimicrobial keyboards” are ineffective when layers of bio-load build up on the high-touch surfaces and need long periods of time and proper humidity to destroy the offending cells. No study exists to substantiate antimicrobial efficacy on keyboards.
Attending a national hospital I.T. conference in Chicago last week, Jeff Goldman, Senior Vice President, Man & Machine, Inc. noted, “When I brought up the topic of sealed verses open style keyboards with several of the attending CIO’s (Chief Information Officers) they told me they need to spend money now for fully sealed waterproof keyboards which can be locked for disinfection at their hospital workstations. They are understandably concerned for the safety of their colleagues and patients in light of Ebola reaching our shores”. Goldman went on to say, “I was shocked by how many of the CIO’s tell me they are still using open style keyboards, often the same ones you find in a typical office setting and in office settings most workers don’t have to share keyboards, in hospitals, all the keyboards are shared by multiple shifts of users”.
Man & Machine manufactures Medical Grade™ keyboards and mice featuring Tru-Lock, allowing the user to lock the keyboard at the workstation so it can be easily cleaned and disinfected between patients without the need to remove the USB cable or typing gibberish on
the computer screen when wiping. These fully sealed peripherals designed to stand up to any EPA approved hospital disinfect and terminal cleaning procedures in the event of an infectious outbreak. Features include, optional multi-level backlight and magnets under the skin to hold fast to wall-mount arm trays in patient rooms, avoiding the need for dirty Velcro™ or double-sided tape. USB cable lengths are made to order for cable management. Additional specialty version for downtime workstation and dictation workstations keyboards and mice are also available. The entire line of Medical Grade keyboards and mice are designed, manufactured and serviced in the USA.
Man & Machine, Inc. is a privately held company founded in 1982 and headquarter in Landover, Maryland. The company manufactures a full line of Medical Grade and washable keyboards and mice. The company makes peripherals for healthcare, industrial and public safety industries. Other products include privacy computer monitors and tablets and vinyl wrapping of iPads, tablets, monitors and laptops for easy identification and point-of-sale messaging. The company OEM’s peripherals for many Fortune 500 companies. Additional offices are located in Tennessee, Philadelphia, Portland, Taiwan and The Netherlands.
