The Infection Prevention Strategy (TIPS)

In this episode, we talk with John LaRochelle, a long-standing contributor and board member at TIPS, and President of  Lighthouse Environmental Infection Prevention . To gain a deeper understanding of John's impact, I turned to Michael Diamond, who succinctly framed John's journey: 'John has dedicated his career to uplifting those in the least paid positions. His advocacy and development of techno...

The cleaning industry has long been focused on the concept of contact time. But what happens between cleanings? This question grows increasingly pertinent as we navigate both labor shortages and heightened expectations of cleanliness and safety from customers, guests, and patients. A potential part of the solution lies in long-lasting disinfection technology. In this episode, we talk with Jay Denk...

On this episode, we're joined by Shari Solomon, the President of CleanHealth Environmental LLC , and a TIPS Advisory Council member. Shari's journey in the world of environmental policy and law began with a deep-seated interest in environmental matters. Her desire to influence and effect change led her to study law, which subsequently led her to Capitol Hill, where she dedicated her time to shapin...

As an emergency room doctor, John McKeon often recommended allergy and asthma-friendly products to his patients. One patient's mother, while trying to take in all the details, told him it would be so nice if someone would just put a label on these products so that she could know which ones met his specs. That single comment was enough to ignite the latent entrepreneurial tendencies that John had a...

On this episode, we talk with Michael Justason from McMaster University and the LightBoard Depot about online communication. Specifically, we talk about how to do it better. Michael has been teaching in person and online for years and he's learned some tricks that he says, in some ways, have made him more effective online than in person. Now this was a surprise even to him, and he's going to expla...

On this episode we talk with: Dan Mueller, TIPS Advisory Board Member and Senior Vice President, N. American Sales at Kersia Malachy McGlynn, Head of Operations for Healthcare at Kersia Dan and Malachy help us to understand what sustainability really means in the business context and beyond. It's a nuanced discussion that covers: How Kersia approaches sustainability for their own business operatio...

On this episode we talk with: Wendy Dietzler, Senior Director of Events and Education for Trade Press Media Group , which produces industry-leading events for facilities, cleaning, and freight rail industries, including the National Facilities Management & Technology Conference, CleanLink Summit, and RailTrends.   Corinne Zudonyi, editor-in-chief of Contracting Profits, Sanitary Maintenance, and F...

On this episode, we talk with Hector Bremner. Hector is CEO of  Avricore Health which is a pharmacy service innovator focused on acquiring and developing early-stage technologies aimed at moving pharmacy forward. For example, its flagship offering HealthTab ™ gives community pharmacies a turn-key solution for rapid testing. The reason they're doing this is because the scope of services being offer...

There is a critical shortage of Clinical Laboratory Scientists across the U.S. According to today's guest, there's a nationwide gap of roughly 40% and it's creating a national healthcare crisis that the public doesn't quite grasp. On this episode we talk with Dr. Rodney Rohde, a Regents' Professor at Texas State University, and the University Distinguished Chair and Professor for Clinical Laborato...

On this episode, we talk with Max Simonovsky, Founder & CEO of Soapy . Max founded Soapy after an interaction with his young child regarding handwashing. It got him thinking about how environmental triggers and our perceptions of them can impact our behaviors. He followed that thread, and it became Soapy. Soapy's hand-washing technology educates, validates, and modifies behavior. In the field, Soa...

Dr. Deborah Birx was drawn to science from a very young age. Along with her siblings, and with the full support of her parents, Dr. Birx soldered circuit boards, searched for fossils, and recorded measurements of solar eclipses while other kids her age colored and played hopscotch. Her early scientific exploration led Dr. Birx to study chemistry in college, where she became fascinated by infectiou...

This is the second part of our recent discussion with Daniel Pollack. Daniel retired from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2021 after a 37-year career. Last time on episode 37 we spoke with Dr. Pollock about his career path at CDC, the launching of the National Healthcare Safety Network, and lessons learned from designing the Antimicrobial Use and Resistance data collection...

Daniel Pollock retired from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2021 after a 37-year career during which he worked as a medical epidemiologist in the agency's infectious diseases, informatics, injury prevention, and environmental health programs.  From 2004 - 2021, Dr. Pollock led the CDC unit responsible for national surveillance of healthcare-associated infections and antimic...

We all know the story of Sir Alexander Fleming's accidental discovery of penicillin. Similarly, the X-Ray, Insulin, and many more medical and scientific breakthroughs can be traced back to "happy accidents". Each time the scientist attempted to do something else, found an odd thread and pulled it. Had they not seen it, or decided not to pull it, our modern human experience would have been drastica...

Dr. Mark Hernandez is a registered professional civil engineer and an expert on the characterization and control of bioaerosols indoors and out.  He runs a research lab that assesses the efficacy of new disinfection practices for the military, industrial hygiene, and sanitary engineering sectors. He's the lead inventor on several patents that support various start-up companies. He's worked side-by...

Jon Adkins is Senior Vice President at ISSA - The Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association . We discuss: - The mechanics of hosting a large tradeshow during a pandemic. - Leaning on the GBAC STAR accreditation program to help them pull it off – The Las Vegas Convention Center and cleaning service contractor, United Service Companies are both GBAC STAR accredited. Resort World and the Las Vegas McCa...

Rachel Olsavicky is Regional Marketing Manager, Commercial & Public Interest at Essity Tom Bergin is Healthcare Marketing Director at Essity Professional Hygiene . Nancy Farrell is Senior Product Manager for the Tork Vision Cleaning Service .   We discuss: Tork Interactive Clean Hospital Training : A free, Interactive training for optimal cleaning results in hospital environments. Virtual Reality...

Gunner Lyslo is the founder and CEO at Surfacide . We discuss: Surfacide Eos ™ - a new UVC disinfection modality that is geared primarily outside of the healthcare vertical. A recent University of Iowa study that demonstrated the efficacy of Surfacide's technology against SARS-CoV-2. Bringing evidenced-based solutions for infection prevention from healthcare to other industries. The new obligation...

Tim Burns is Vice President – Facility Care Corporate Accounts at Ecolab . We discuss: Ecolab's Peroxide Multi-Surface Cleaner and Disinfectant that's nominated for an ISSA innovation award. It's a three in one product that can be used as a multi-surface cleaner, a glass cleaner, and a disinfectant. The focus on cost and efficiency for offices operating at low capacities. The current struggles wit...

Jim Arbogast is Vice President, Hygiene Sciences & Public Health Advancements at GOJO , makers of PURELL™. We discuss: The importance of providing a great user experience with hand sanitizers and surface cleaners. Delivering on the main promise and eliminating trade-offs. Feel, smell, contact time, dry time, residue, etc. are critical in getting people to use products and use them correctly. The e...

Dave Maurer is President and CEO at Creative Products International (CPI) . We discuss: Four-dimensional cleaning (floors, walls, desks/surfaces, and air) CPI's partnership with GBAC Respecting the cleaning staff and keeping them safe Empowering the cleaning staff with proper training and education Considering the environment, especially as we increase cleaning during the pandemic ... Learn more a...

Sara Djubek is Senior Director of Happiness at Aunt Flow . Great title! We discuss: Menstrual equity and the need for free access to safe and effective menstrual products. Period poverty exists in all workplaces and all environments. Why the materials matter when it comes to menstrual products. Raising awareness and giving back. Going back to understanding that we care about each other and have em...

Peter Leahy is Senior Marketing Manager for Cleaning and Hygiene at Kimberly-Clark Professional .   We discuss: The IoT-enabled Onvation system that enables smart restroom servicing. It helps predict when devices need to be refilled. Smart restroom servicing enables more efficient staffing and use of resources, less waste, and satisfied customers. The colliding variables that have rendered our pas...

Avisha NessAiver is Science Advisor to ActivePure and Chief Science Officer at MedStartr Direct . We discuss: How ActivePure uses advanced photocatalysis to bring the self-cleaning mechanisms of the outdoors, inside. Filtration vs. environmental decontamination. The practical application of making people safer and making them feel safer. The economic impact of clean air. ... Learn more at https://...

Douglas Stein is CEO at PPE Advantage Rob Williams is President at R.L. Williams Company We discuss: Demand for nitrile gloves nearly tripled at the beginning of the pandemic. This opened the door to nefarious activities and fraud that cost U.S. companies billions. Companies lost deposits, got fake gloves, and even used gloves. The PPE Coalition was formed to help organizations that were victims o...