Healthy Casework Solutions For Medical Facilities

Do you remember that study that made the rounds a few years ago about how the average desk hosts about 400 times the number of germs as a toilet seat? It’s certainly true that work surfaces which are touched over and over can accumulate a layer of dirt and oils that attract and nurture bacteria. Add in the particularly nasty strains of germs that are present in a typical hospital setting, and you realize how critical it is to maintain the best hygiene standards possible. Nosocomial (hospital acquired) infections are far too common among patients today; and healthcare workers are also at high risk for being contaminated with bacteria that leads to illness from medical casework cabinets and worksurfaces.

Agion Painted Cabinets Reduce Bacteria And Germs

Now, there’s a “silver bullet” to help reduce the bacteria impact on healthcare millwork cabinets and worksurfaces. Agion is a silver impregnated compound in paint that is used as an antimicrobial topcoat to prevent the spread of bacteria and germs. Very few people use silver in their powder coat, which makes the Agion coating unique. Before the development of antibiotics, silver was used in sulfa drugs to keep wounds from getting infected. Today, since so many strains of bacteria (like MRSA) are resistant to antibiotics, we’re back to using silver to help prevent against bacterial growth for day-to-day situations. Contact with Agion coated surfaces is safe for humans and deadly for bacteria and mold.  Modular casework cabinets and worksurfaces treated with Agion germ fighting products keep battling microbes year after year. This isn’t a substitute for having hospital workers wash their hands or for decontaminating commonly touched casework cabinets and worksurfaces, but it’s a good backup system.

Improving Indoor Air Quality And Limiting Off Gassing

Agion powder coating is accomplished by spraying electro-statically charged particles of resin onto a steel cabinet component. Then the cabinet is assembled using a unique rivet construction similar to the process used in building airplanes. Rivet construction provides flexibility to change cabinet components and ensures all edges of every panel are coated with paint. Each individual cabinet is baked at a high temperature so the Agion powder coating bonds directly to the cabinet’s metal. This means there aren’t any loose particles wafting around in the air after the powder coating is cured.  Electro-statically Agion painted casework cabinets limit off gassing of VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) keeping your building’s indoor air quality high. Particularly nasty VOCs  like formaldehyde are commonly used in a variety of  casework and millwork furniture finishes. These substances are considered carcinogenic and can also cause acute symptoms such as headaches, nausea, and breathing difficulty in sensitive individuals. That’s especially important in a hospital or long-term health care facility where patients with breathing problems like chronic bronchitis or emphysema need the cleanest air possible.

Design and Planning Healthy Modular Casework and Modular Millwork Cabinets

Want to know if modular casework makes sense for your facility?  We offer design and planning assistance to help you determine if modular casework will benefit your facility.  Contact us today toll free 1-800-803-1083 or email us at info@southwestsolutions.com for more information or to have one of our experienced modular casework specialists survey your needs.