10 million (and four) reasons to tackle germs this flu season
6 April 2023
We’ve all heard about how COVID-19 should have prepared us for future flu seasons, and with the barrage of public health announcements and advice around, it can be easy to let some important personal hygiene practices fall by the wayside.
With flu cases soaring to 100 times what they were this time last year and the typical office desk housing over 10 million bacteria (400 times more than a toilet seat), then there really is over 10 million reasons why you should prioritise hygiene at your workplace this flu season. Here’s how you can do that.
1. Clean AND disinfect
It’s easy to fall into the trap of ‘giving something a wipe’ to get rid of germs and dirt. The reality is that simply ‘cleaning’ a surface only does half the job.
When you clean using a detergent and water solution, you are only removing the grime and some of the bacteria and viruses, as grime can reduce the ability of disinfectants to kill germs.
Disinfecting using a product with at least 70% alcohol concentration following a clean from a reputable detergent can ensure your surfaces aren’t breeding grounds during the flu season. Luckily for you, WS Whereabout Supply offers market-leading products for both cleaning and disinfecting of your workplaces. Better yet, WS also supply green disinfectant solutions to limit the use of nasty chemicals which you can find in our green range here.
2. Make washing your hands easy and inviting
Nothing is more discouraging for washing your hands than a lack of soap and paper towel. What’s worse is deciding whether to add to the germ mountain of used paper towel in an overflowing bin.
Ensuring bathroom facilities are inviting and functional can be a great way to reduce the risk of flu in your workplace. Refilling paper towel, installing soap dispensers, and even removing graffiti in your public use bathrooms to make them more appealing, could all encourage workers and any users of your bathroom facilities to wash their hands.
Selecting the right-sized bin for your workforce could also prevent lingering germs on used paper towel from spreading if they are properly contained.
3. Workplace set-up
We all have that work colleague who loves to eat garlic filled lunches… let’s call her Maria. Avoiding Maria’s love of garlic should be enough of a reason to ensure distance between workspaces, let alone a damaging flu season. As an airborne virus, the flu can easily travel between employees if adequate spacing (1.5 metres) is not maintained.
Improving ventilation with well-maintained HVAC systems, or even just cracking a window, can also prevent airborne germs from becoming stagnant in the office air.
Breathe clean in your workplace with Diversey Clean Air, which is a specially formulated odour counteractant which will kill malodour causing germs, as well as masking Maria’s garlic odour from the far corner of the office…
4. Wearing a mask
A piece of advice you may roll your eyes at, but with the flu season fast approaching and mandatory isolation gone for positive cases of COVID-19, now is the best time to stock-up on your collection of masks. For those in occupations where contact with others is frequently less than 1.5 metres away, such as in hospitality, masks can protect you from droplets from an infected person’s sneeze or cough.
WS Whereabout Supply has a range of face masks and respiratory gear available on our website.
Ensuring your workplace has up-to-date hygiene practices can lessen the impact of the flu season this year. Now that we’ve given you 10 million (and four) reasons to do so, why not check out what office supplies you didn’t know you needed after a good clean and disinfection.
WS Whereabout Supply are always looking for new products to help meet your workplace needs, so let us know if there is something we should be stocking by giving us a call on 07 3902 0900.