Our Mission and Goals
Our Mission
To reduce preventable infections through the collaboration of industry, academia, science, regulatory, and service sectors by interrupting the transmission of surface-related pathogens in healthcare in support of the community and public health.
The Healthcare Surfaces Institute has developed four goals to support our mission:
Focus a spotlight on the role surface disinfection compatibility plays in an urgent public health issue – healthcare-associated infections.
Cross the bridge between the people who work in healthcare facilities and the people who design them in order to create a safe environment that addresses the real-life.
Perform and publish research to educate the world on how microbes harbor and live within surfaces and on products in the healthcare environment.
Help healthcare facilities identify specific products that can be efficiently and effectively disinfected via a minimum testing standard and certification program to validate surface disinfection compatibility.
Our Work
The role of the Healthcare Surfaces Institute, a division of ISSA, is to address the foundational issue of surfaces, which is virtually overlooked but provides an opportunity to realize sustainable reductions.
- We provide a platform for collaboration between organizations and individuals focused on all areas of expertise to identify critical surface issues and develop multi-modal solutions to mitigate the spread of infection.
- We collaborate, support, and develop educational programs and materials.
- We develop guidelines and best practices as it relates to surfaces within healthcare facilities.
- We review existing research and make recommendations for additional necessary systematic work in order to increase the stock of knowledge and devise new applications.
- We support policy changes driven by research and best practices that mitigate the spread of infection and provide a safe healthcare environment for healthcare workers, patients, and the general public.
- While the focus of the Institute is healthcare, outcomes as a result of the Healthcare Surfaces Institute reach far beyond just healthcare to include education, transportation, tourism, and many others.
We rely on your support to save lives.
Please consider becoming a member or exploring corporate sponsorship through your workplace today.