Coatings in health care

Annually over 4 million patients acquire an infection while being admitted in healthcare, for about
1% of these patients this infection is the direct cause of death. Combined with the increase in antimicrobial resistance of microorganisms over the last decades, these healthcare associated infections pose a general threat for our healthcare system with substantial financial consequences.



The implementation of antimicrobial coatings as a preventive measure for bacterial colonisation and migration in a healthcare setting is proposed to be the solution for hospital wide outbreaks caused by organisms like Pseudomonas spp., Klebsiella spp., MRSA and VRE. This study focusses on the implementation of a photocatalytic TiO 2 coating on surfaces surrounding the patient in the patient ward of a Medical Centre with a general focus on the antimicrobial efficacy of the coating in a real-
life situation.

The implementation of antimicrobial coatings in health care results in an improved hygienic environment to support patient recovery and lowers the risk of a health care associated infection.

1, 3, 6, 12 and 18 months after coating

In every hospital 2 rooms will be treated with an TiO2-based coating system to prevent microbiological colonisation of contact surfaces.

Two rooms will recieve a sham-coating without TiO2, a placebo like approach.

Rooms are located on the same department next to eachother.
Patients are placed in patient rooms at random, since coating is regarded as safe and no intervention in patient treatment is introduced.