Norovirus Decontamination Project
Posted by Rick Brouwer on Wed, Jul 08, 2009 @ 01:27 PM
Recently, Brouwer Brothers Steamatic was asked to provide cleaning, and more importantly, decontamination of several buildings including four dormitories and other buildings at a large local college after a suspected and later confirmed norovirus outbreak. This "bug" had affected approximately 10% of the two thousand attendees and staff members in attendance at the college for a week-long summer convention.
Noroviruses are members of a group of viruses called caliciviruses
also known previously as "Norwalk-like viruses." Infection with norovirus affects the stomach and intestines, causing an illness called gastroenteritis, or "stomach flu." This "stomach flu" is not related to the flu (or influenza), which is a respiratory illness caused by influenza virus. In addition, noroviruses are not related to bacteria and parasites that can cause gastrointestinal illnesses. Norovirus is not a "new" virus, but interest in it is growing as more is learned about how frequently noroviruses cause illness in people.
How serious is norovirus disease? Norovirus disease is usually not serious, although people may feel very sick and vomit many times a day. Most people get better within 1 or 2 days, and they have no long-term health effects related to their illness. However, sometimes people are unable to drink enough liquids to replace the liquids they lost because of vomiting and diarrhea. These persons can become dehydrated and may need special medical attention. This problem with dehydration is usually only seen among the very young, the elderly, and persons with weakened immune systems. There is no evidence to suggest that an infected person can become a long-term carrier of norovirus.
How do people become infected with noroviruses? Noroviruses are found in the 
stool or vomit of infected people. People can become infected with the virus in several ways, including:
- eating food or drinking liquids that are contaminated with norovirus;
- touching surfaces or objects contaminated with norovirus, and then placing their hand in their mouth;
- having direct contact with another person who is infected and showing symptoms (for example, when caring for someone with illness, or sharing foods or eating utensils with someone who is ill).
Persons working in day-care centers, nursing homes or educational institutions should pay special attention to children or residents who have norovirus illness. This virus is very contagious and can spread rapidly throughout such environments.
Symptoms of norovirus illness usually begin about 24 to 48 hours after ingestion of the virus, but they can appear as early as 12 hours after exposure. Noroviruses are very contagious and can spread easily from person to person. Both stool and vomit are infectious. Particular care should be taken with young children in diapers who may have diarrhea. People infected with norovirus are contagious from the moment they begin feeling ill to at least 3 days after recovery. Some people may be contagious for as long as 2 weeks after recovery. Therefore, it is particularly important for people to use good hand washing and other hygienic practices after they have recently recovered from norovirus illness.
In the particular case of this local college, the Cook County Health Department required the college and its' facilities management department use of the protocol specified by the Michigan Department of Community Health. The document referred to is "Guidelines for the Environmental Cleaning and Disinfection of Norovirus", updated 1/5/09.
The document contains information for disinfection and specific clean-up
procedures for food service establishments, healthcare/hospital/nursing home facilities, schools and daycare facilities. Some examples of items to disinfect include: doorknobs, faucets, sinks, toilets, commodes, bath rails, floors, phones, counters, chairs (including backs), 
tables, hand rails, elevator buttons, light switches, keyboards, mattress covers, aprons, uniforms, linens, bedding and ice machines. Vertical surfaces, ceilings, and areas not used prior to or during the outbreak are not normally included in the specific scope of work, unless possibly affected by contaminants.
Chlorine bleach (sodium hypochlorite -NaOCl) in specific solutions is a recommended disinfectant, however, it cannot be used on "soft" goods - upholstery, carpeting, etc. so other products compatible with these surfaces are mandatory. Personal protective equipment of a basic nature is also required, involving quality eye protection, good gloves, and appropriate respiratory protection.
All of this information is based on the Federal Government's Center for Disease and Infection Control research and recommendations as put forth in their multiple publications on controlling noroviruses.
In the recent event, Brouwer Brothers Steamatic cleaning services was required to disinfect all the affected buildings and areas within four days to allow for final inspections and reopening of the entire campus for another event requiring the use of all of the affected buildings. Working with the Facilities Director, BBS staffed the project with over fifty people under the supervision of Ron Muldoon. Ron is one of our most experienced team members with over twenty years of tenure in the industry, and all with BBS. All timelines and final inspections were met and passed, much to the satisfaction of the college administration and facilities management.
If your facility has such an issue or even just a question about disinfection procedures for norovirus, call Brouwer Brothers Steamatic cleaning service to let us and our team of experienced technicians and managers help you.