She’s just 5’5” and quiet, but don’t let her demure looks fool you—she’s a ruthless killer who moves at the speed of light. Meet Tru-D, the newest member of Vancouver General Hospital’s (VGH) Housekeeping and Infection Control teams.
Tru-D SmartUVC, or “Trudi” as staff affectionately call her, is a superbug slaying robot being piloted at VGH for the next few months.
What kind of bugs does Tru-D kill? The machine disinfects surfaces with ultraviolet (UV) light to kill germs and viruses, such as norovirus, influenza, and C. difficile.
Where will Tru-D be used?The machine will be used to disinfect patient isolation rooms, operating rooms and the bronchoscopy and endoscopy suites at VGH.
How Tru-D can help us fight the fluSo far this is shaping up to be a worse than average season for norovirus and the flu, and using UV light disinfection devices could allow us to help contain outbreaks in our facilities.
This is a first VGH is the first hospital in Canada to use the Tru-D device. Staff will also try out a second UV light disinfectant machine, called PulseRx. If either machine is successful in significantly reducing the spread of infection, VCH will analyze how to best use the technology within current budgets.
Tru-D will complement manual cleaningTru-D will complement traditional, manual cleaning, taking infection control to a new level. ARAMARK Healthcare, Vancouver Coastal Health’s contracted cleaning company will train staff to operate the machine. Once a patient and staff leave a room, it will be cleaned traditionally by Housekeeping staff, then the machine will be used.
Is it safe? UV light has been used to disinfect the air in health care facilities and in laboratories for years. The UV light the machine produces does not go through glass windows or doors.
follow us
