The kinds of incidents facilities face
These events can involve significant contamination in small, hard-surfaced spaces, sometimes on fixtures that are designed to resist tampering and are hard to clean thoroughly.
- Blood, urine, feces or vomit in cells and holding areas
- Self-harm incidents and in-custody deaths, after investigators release the area
- Fights that leave blood in common areas, showers or intake
- Illness spreading through housing units
- Sharps or improvised items found during cleanup
- Transport vans and sally ports contaminated during a transfer
Working inside your procedures
Security comes first in every correctional setting. We follow your entry, escort, tool control and search procedures, and we work only in areas your staff have cleared. If your facility requires background checks or clearance for vendors, please tell us your requirements before scheduling so they can be addressed.
If items that may be contraband or evidence turn up during cleanup, we stop, leave them in place where safe, and notify the officer escorting us. We do not handle evidence or take part in investigations.
Our process in a facility
- Plan with your staff We confirm the area, the incident, escort arrangements and whether investigators have released the space.
- Sharps check Before hands-on work begins, we visually check for needles, blades and other sharp items and collect them in puncture-resistant containers.
- Remove and clean Fluids and contaminated materials are removed, and surfaces, fixtures and bunks are cleaned.
- Disinfect EPA-registered disinfectants are applied per label and held for the contact time.
- Package waste Waste is packaged and labeled for appropriate disposal or handoff to the facility's medical waste vendor.
- Report We give your supervisor a description of the areas treated and products used.
What staff can do until we arrive
Secure the area and keep inmates and non-essential staff out of it. Do not assign inmate workers to clean significant blood or bodily fluids, and avoid hosing fluids toward floor drains, which can spread contamination into adjoining spaces. Note any sharps you are aware of so we can retrieve them first.
If anyone was exposed to blood through a cut, the eyes or the mouth, your medical provider should evaluate them promptly under your exposure control plan.
After a death or self-harm incident
These events affect staff deeply, even when they are trained for them. We work quietly, coordinate through the supervisor you designate, and begin only after the medical examiner and investigators have finished. We do not discuss incidents outside the facility.
If you or someone you know is struggling, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline).
Responsibilities that stay with the facility
Detention officers and medical staff with potential blood exposure are covered by the employer's exposure control plan under OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, which TOSHA enforces for state and local government in Tennessee. Bringing us in for a specific cleanup does not change those duties.
Medical decisions about inmates, illness isolation and outbreak management belong to your medical provider and the health department. Plumbing and fixture repairs go to your maintenance staff or contractors.
Vehicles and illness response
Transport vans and patrol vehicles can be cleaned and disinfected with the same process; see police vehicle decontamination. During an illness affecting a housing unit, we can provide cleaning and disinfection support under your medical team's direction; see infectious disease decontamination. Facilities that prefer a standing service agreement can set one up so contacts, security clearances and paperwork are ready before an incident. We serve sheriff's offices and facilities across all 41 counties of Middle Tennessee.