ArticleBritish paramedic journal2020
A two-armed, randomised, controlled exploratory study of adding the AmbuGard cleaning system to normal deep-cleaning procedures in a regional ambulance service.
Article in British paramedic journal, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed, 1 citations in OpenAlex.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundAmbulance services transport patients with infections and diseases, and could pose a cross-transmission risk to patients and staff through environmental contamination. The literature suggests that environmental pathogens are present in ambulances, cleaning is inconsistent and patient/staff impact is difficult to quantify. Eco-Mist developed a dry misting decontamination system for ambulance use called AmbuGard, which works in < 30 minutes and is 99.9999% effective against common pathogens. The research question is: 'What pathogens are present in North East Ambulance Service ambulances and what impact does adding AmbuGard to the deep-cleaning process make?'.
methodsA two-armed, randomised controlled trial enrolled 14 ambulances during their regular 24-week deep clean, which were 1:1 randomised to deep cleaning (control arm) or deep cleaning plus AmbuGard (intervention arm). Polywipe swabs were taken before and after cleaning from five locations selected for high rates of contact (steering wheel, shelf, side-door grab rail, patient seat armrest, rear door handle/grab rail). Microbiology culture methods identified the presence and amount of bacterial organisms present, including the selected pathogens:
resultsPathogens of interest were found in 10 (71%) vehicles. CoNS were found in all vehicles. Pathogens were found on all locations swabbed. Normal deep cleaning was effective at eliminating pathogens and the addition of AmbuGard showed no obvious improvement in effectiveness.
conclusionPathogens associated with healthcare-acquired infections were found throughout all ambulances. Normal deep cleaning was effective, and adding AmbuGard showed no obvious improvement. This was a small study at a single point in time. Further research is needed into temporal trends, how to reduce pathogens during normal clinical duties and patient/staff impact.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.