Flu and Keyboards

Most work at home professionals neglect the housework. I believe that it fits the old saying, 'the cobblers children go without shoes.' At least, most of the work at home freelance writers I know do not worry too much about the finer aspects of housecleaning.

The Flu in Offices

At one time I owned a rather large house and office cleaning service. We did not scrape jam off the counter. Our service cleaned homes with rare rugs, antique Royal Doulton, and offices with 'real' carpets.

The demands of the job led us into a client base who were salary paid and were expected to be at work when needed. In short, they had no sick days. This led to us becoming aware of some very important health risks.

I guess that today's post is inspired by the current Globe & Mail's series on public bathrooms and what I learned in the office cleaning business.

We all know that there are germs on our keyboards, buttons (televisions/ phones/ VCRs/ Game boys/ Xbox/ door knobs/ stoves/ fridge handles) Most of us are good at keeping these areas 'looking' clean. What we do not understand is that there is a difference between looking clean and actually being clean.

Our hands leave oils on surfaces. These oils are invisible and are a breeding ground for pathogens. We all know about the risks of pathogens growing on shower curtains - serious. What most people don't know is that those risks are also inherent to keyboards, gell wrist pads, (our beloved wrist guards), light switches, printer on/off buttons, and even the handles of our filing cabinets.

It takes more than a quick cleaning to make these places safe. They must be cleaned with an anti oil agent and something that does more than kill bacteria. Bacteria is bad - but it is not a pathogen.

Bleach is a great killer - but it must remain wet for 10 minutes to work This includes sprays. It also must be used at the bare minimum every other day.

If you are like other work at home freelance professionals and suffer from what appear to be flu, stress, insomnia, gastric reflux, or allergies, then take the time to clean the surfaces with more than 'a quick wipe.'

You may need to do this for a month or more before you find relief, because you need to remove pathogens from your environment, but your blood cells need time to remove them from your body.

I would be willing to hear any more advice on this topic. It is one that I find very serious. Freelance writer's face deadlines all the time, and missing one can create a financial burden.