Since ExecuStay Midwest opened its doors in 1990, guest safety and satisfaction have been our top priority. While a lot has changed over the last 30 years, including our expansion from servicing one market to over fifteen markets, our dedication to these foundational ideas has not.
We've been a trusted corporate housing provider to thousands of travelers and our ability to respond in times of need has been paramount in building that trust.
In 2020, keeping guests safe and happy means corporate housing companies need to step up their housekeeping services to ensure our apartments are a clean, happy, and healthy temporary home. And we've done just that.
Read on for a look at the major steps we're taking to ensure the cleanliness of our apartments are up to the high standards of guests during COVID-19 as well as the health and safety guidelines our housekeeping staff always follows to keep them and our guests safe.
One of the most important steps Americans have taken to protect each other during the coronavirus pandemic has been social distancing. By limiting interactions between people as much as possible, people around the world have helped to reduce the spread of the virus.
While the original wave of COVID-19 affected persons has passed in many places in the United States and the world, it is still essential for people to continue distancing from each other, if they can, until the risk of the virus has been reduced.
As we resume our housekeeping services, we're continuing in our efforts to distance ourselves from others to help fight the novel coronavirus.
To this end, our housekeepers will only enter unoccupied apartments to complete the cleaning process. This allows both the guest and our housekeeping teams to remain safer from contracting the virus in the event either party were afflicted. While no member of the ExecuStay Midwest team has contracted the COVID-19 virus, we will continue to do everything we can to mitigate any chance of putting our guests and staff at risk.
We will notify each guest with the date and estimated time of their housekeeping services in advance. We will only clean unoccupied apartments. If a guest is at home at the scheduled housekeeping time, the housekeeper will kindly ask the client to leave the apartment until the cleaning process is complete. If the guest does not wish to vacate the apartment for the cleaning, the housekeeper will skip that scheduled visit and return at the next scheduled time.
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is important gear that can help the user reduce their risk of contracting diseases or infections. It also helps to maintain a clean environment after the cleaning process has concluded; ensuring no fingerprints, smudges, or uncleanliness of any kind is left behind.
PPE has been a part of our housekeeping policy since we first began our housekeeping service, but we've stepped up our requirements to improve the protection of our staff and our guests' temporary homes.
At this time, all housekeeping staff will utilize the following personal protective equipment when performing a cleaning visit:
Improving the level of personal protection for our housekeeping staff is an important step to keep them and our guests safe.
An obvious, but necessary, step towards reducing the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on our clients our housekeeping teams are screened daily for the following symptoms:
Additionally, if a guest or housekeeper has been exposed to anyone potentially carrying the virus, we will politely wait until the next scheduled visit to clean the guests' apartment.
One of the key benefits of utilizing our cleaning service is the industrial-grade agents we employ to cut through COVID-19 and millions of germs, diseases, and bacteria. Through our thorough cleaning and disinfecting process, we sanitize each surface with materials approved by the CDC and EPA to kill COVID-19 in seconds, reducing guests' risk of exposure in their temporary homes.
These cleaning materials are not only effective against the novel coronavirus. They also work against numerous common viruses including:
When guests take advantage of our housekeeping services, they know we are going above and beyond to make their apartment a clean, happy, and healthy temporary home.
While we've instituted these protocols as a direct response to the COVID-19 pandemic, there are other safety guidelines our housekeepers have always followed that help improve the sterilization process.
Housekeepers will frequently wash their hands for at least 20 seconds, and will always wash their hands between cleaning apartments. If soap and water is unavailable between apartments, the housekeepers are equipped with rubbing alcohol as a sanitization alternative.
Our housekeepers have always been instructed to avoid touching their eyes, nose and mouth while cleaning. This helps protect them from any bacteria in apartments. As our housekeeping services return in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic, we've reiterated this point to our housekeeping staff as an extra precaution to protect them and our guests.
Another fundamental we've reiterated to our staff has been to perform proper coughing and sneezing etiquette. This basic skill is ingrained in each of our staff members to reduce the risk of spreading disease.
These health and safety guidelines are an essential part of our housekeeping process, which helps make our corporate apartments healthy, safe, and clean homes for our guests. Housekeeping services during a guest's stay is only part of our overall efforts to exceed guests' cleanliness expectations.
Our housekeeping staff follows a 250+ point cleaning checklist when preparing each apartment for a new guest's arrival. Learn more about how we clean apartments before guests arrive and how our thorough process helps protect residents in our blog "How Corporate Housing Companies Keep their Apartments Clean, Healthy, and Safe."