Unseen pathogen pathways: the impact of high-touch surfaces in public spaces
The significant role of hands in transferring pathogens across frequently touched and highly interconnected surfaces in a hotel lobby was demonstrated through observations and sampling, highlighting the opportunity for hand and surface hygiene interventions to break the chain of infection in this hotel setting. These findings have implications for the optimisation of hygiene interventions in other hotel settings and are also applicable to similar public spaces, where common shared surfaces and objects (such as front desk counters and elevator buttons) could be targeted.
Authors
- J D Sexton
- Lisa Ackerley
- Kelly A. Reynolds (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4682-8359)
- Stephanie Cooper (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4130-8496)
- Carolyn Buckley (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3609-4104)
- Sophie E. Upson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6365-0105)
- Adrian C. Paskey (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4575-3092)
- L Gent
- Manfred Spitzer
- John Picton
Institutions
- University of Arizona (US)
- Public Health England (GB)
- Reckitt Benckiser (United Kingdom) (GB)
- Reckitt Benckiser (Netherlands) (NL)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Perspectives in Public Health
- Published
- 2025-10-24
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1177/17579139251371964
- Primary Topic
- Infection Control and Ventilation
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00