CHAIR / Yee Hong Centre for Geriatric Care / Lundin Mining Corporation partnership show how copper can be an added to high-touch surfaces to help protect the most vulnerable

TORONTO, Aug. 24, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In May of 2021, CHAIR (The Coalition for Community & Healthcare Acquired Infection Reduction) was pleased to partner with Lundin Mining and Yee Hong Center for Geriatric Care to pilot an Antimicrobial Copper Project in one of Yee Hong's long-term care centres in Toronto. The project replaced or treated approximately 700 high-touch surfaces with solid layer antimicrobial copper, which has been proven to eliminate up to 99% of harmful bacteria within two hours.

Antimicrobial copper works continuously releasing charged ions to attack bacteria and viruses that land on a surface. It interferes with the normal cell function of these microorganisms and damages cell membranes so that they can no longer breath, eat, digest, or create energy.

All parties in the project are aware of the great antimicrobial properties of copper and this project was to assess the practicality of the products in a long-term care centre. Products from two Canadian companies, Aereus Technologies (aereustech.com) and Coptek Copper Covers (coptek.ca) were installed on over 700 surfaces including door handles, cabinet pulls, elevator handles, grab bars and push plates. Both companies are registered with Health Canada Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) to claim the bacterial reductions as noted above.

The project ran for 14 months and had 5 stages: Assessment, Pre-swab, Installation, Post Swab and Data Analysis.

Microbiological samples were taken prior to and after the copper products' installation. "When the results were tabulated, we saw a 99.3% reduction in bioburden on the copper surfaces compared to the previous non-copper coated surfaces," said Steve Reinecke, Executive Director of CHAIR and Project Implementation Lead.

"These results show that engineered infection prevention (EIP) solutions using copper can help protect the health and safety of seniors, their families and our front-line workers," said Reinecke. "The addition of copper on high-touch surfaces or copper hardware replacement is a great enhancement to Yee Hong's already very good cleaning and disinfection regiment."  

"CHAIR is excited about results around this project the continued partnership with Yee Hong and Lundin Mining Corporation," said Reinecke.

A video highlighting the project can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOqXJ4UwMOw

About Yee Hong Centre for Geriatric Care.

Yee Hong is the largest non-for-profit senior care organization in the country, delivering high-quality, culturally appropriate services to Chinese and other ethnic seniors since 1994. Operating 805 long-term care home beds and a wide range of community support services, Yee Hong annually serves over 15,000 individuals across the Greater Toronto Area.

About CHAIR - The Coalition for Community & Healthcare Acquired Infection Reduction

CHAIR is a coalition of members working on promoting and Engineered Infection Prevention (EIP) solutions to reduce Community and Healthcare Infections. CHAIR was formed in 2014 with the original goal of supporting the creation of a safe healthcare environment for patients, staff, and visitors. The coalition has recently revised its vision and mission and developed a new strategic roadmap (2022-2024). It seeks to have a more significant impact on reducing community and healthcare-acquired infections by building awareness and facilitating the application of engineered solutions (air, water, and surface).

For further information:
Steve Reinecke
[email protected]
chaircanada.org