What Are The Health Risks Of Cleaning Up A Death Scene?

Cleaning up a death scene is highly discouraged due to the complications that may arise and the risky nature of the work. In some situations, the death may have been caused by a highly contagious disease and this presents a danger to those cleaning the scene exposing them to infections. It’s recommended that such scenes be attended to by experts such as Advanced Bio Treatment who are qualified to clean death and crime scenes and in dealing with biohazards. Below we explore the health risks associated with cleaning such a scene

Risk Of Infections

You need to take extreme precautions when cleaning a death scene compared to normal cleaning. There is a likelihood of contamination due to the different chemical processes that take place once a person is dead. The body starts decomposing, it releases fluids and odors, and other chemical changes. In circumstances where death was violent such as accident scenes, there may be a presence of blood. The viruses can linger outside the body for weeks after death. This exposes you to infections in case the dead person had an infectious disease such as Hepatitis B, Tuberculosis, influenza, or HIV. 

Psychological Effects

Cleaning up a death scene can be traumatic. This is worsened in cases where the death was violent or if it’s the death was because of murder, suicide, or any other means. No one is ready to view a death scene of a loved one, leave alone clean it up. This may leave permanent psychological issues. Professionals are well trained to deal with the psychological effects of handling such scenes.

Safe Transportation

Biohazard cleanup does not just entail the actual cleanup. How you transport the cleaned material equally matters. Biohazards are transported using special vehicles to a safe location and thorough disinfection is done at the specific area. This helps avoid the spread of the infections to unintended areas and to those around the impacted area especially children who are less cautious and more vulnerable.

Special Equipment

Biohazard cleanup requires specialized equipment and clothing. Personal protective equipment (PPE) is a must to ensure you protect yourself and anyone that you get into contact with. These include eye protection, gloves, respiratory masks, and hazmat suits. Without such equipment, you don’t only pose a risk to others but also to yourself. If you get infected from cleaning such a scene without the necessary material, you pose a danger to your family members and any other person you come into contact with.

Cross-contamination

It’s one thing to clean a death scene, and it’s another thing to ensure it is well disinfected. Disinfectants and cleaning agents used for such scenes are made for industrial use, and this means they are not your average over-the-counter disinfectants. If you do not have such materials, you could cause cross-contamination where you expose other areas not affected by the death scene, exposing even more people to danger. Cleaning a death scene and disinfection are two different stages in the process and should be treated as such.

Biohazard Waste Disposal.

After cleanup and disinfection, biohazard material must be well disposed of. In some cases, the materials are first taken to a lab, where they are also sanitized and disinfected. These may include clothes, places where the dead were found, such as seat cushions, and the blankets they were covered in. These items undergo a sanitation process where they are exposed to high temperatures that kill pathogens before being disposed of normally. If you do not have this knowledge, you may dispose of such items locally, causing more danger to garbage collectors and any other person who may come into contact.

Biohazard Cleanup Compliance

Biohazards include blood, shattered bones, airborne pathogens, fluids, and other organic matter that pose a health hazard. These require advanced bio treatment and handling by a trained professional to ensure they are thoroughly cleaned and disposed of. Failure to comply means exposure of the masses to infections and other unforeseen hazards. Due to the deadly nature of pathogens found in the blood and other body fluids, special equipment and trained personnel should handle such cleaning. Most biohazard cleaning companies have strict rules that regulate how such cleanups are handled.