Hospital sink redesign aims to decrease infection risk

Sinks can be an unexpected transmission route for germs to get to hospital patients, as water splashing sends organisms airborne and handles and drainpipes become a reservoir for superbugs.

A Canadian sink manufacturer is working to change that, by designing a sink with no faucet, knobs or levers that is also designed to reduce splashing, according to a CTV News report. Water comes from a hole where a faucet usually is, and the sink is automated — see the CTV News report for a video.

Additionally, the sink features an ozonator, which, according to the manufacturer's vice president of marketing, will kill bacteria in the water and drain.

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"Infusing the water with ozone, it actually kills bacteria, both on the patients' hands and the sinks' surface; and most importantly, in the drain," Shaun Desroches of Franke Kindred told CTV News.

Collingwood General & Marine Hospital in Ontario installed the redesigned sinks when it redid its emergency room. A hospital spokesperson talked with CTV News, but did not provide any feedback as to if the sinks have reduced the transmission of germs.

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