What (if any) cleaning tackle are you taking/did you take in your labour bag?

[JetLi]

I'm booked to give birth in hospital and am thinking of packing some anti-bac cleaning wipes and tea tree oil. The hospital doesn't have a particularly bad reputation for lack of hygiene and cleanliness, but a friend's baby came home from there with impetigo...

Personally, I would take a spray containing at least 5% bleach, some liquid soap, lots of kitchen roll and some disposable gloves.

I'd give everything I was going to use a proper going over, especially toilet facilities, taps, handrails, push-buttons, telephones and light switches.

Hospital hand gels do not kill bacteria such as C difficile, which a proportion of new mothers end up with especially after a c section as they're on antibiotics.
Bleach kills it, but obviously you can't bleach your hands so make sure you wash them thoroughly with hot water and liquid soap, and make sure everyone else who touches you does the same.

Hope this doesn't sound too extreme but having had c diff I would be ultra careful this time.

Thanks for this Mandragore - sounds like good sound advice to me!

No worries. Good luck!

I meant to say, the hand washing bit is to wash OFF the bacteria, as you can't kill it but you can wash it down the sink!

I would avoid the hand gels at all costs, i believe they exacerbate the problem and lots of nurses don't know they don't kill superbugs.

I've got domestos wipes in my bag for surfaces etc, plus antibac tea tree wipes for hand washing if I can't get to the sink.

Flip flops and Dettol wipes (the big ones) for my first hospital stay when having DS1 - and they came in for a lot o use. Also took in my own toiletries which I used and own loo roll - and own water so didnt have to rely on hospital jugs and cups.