Hand hygiene is almost second nature to healthcare workers, but sometimes when we find ourselves busy or distracted, we might forget to stop and sanitise.
This week, during International Infection Prevention Week we are encouraging you and your teams to remind yourself of the 5 moments of hand hygiene and that clean hands save lives. Remember, don’t forget to perform hand hygiene, before and after, every time!
Hand hygiene is one of our strongest protections in reducing the risk of healthcare associated infections. Performing hand hygiene at critical moments is an important step in keeping ourselves, our patients and our colleagues safe.
Performing hand hygiene before and after contact with our patients, before and after procedures, before and after touching equipment, is vital in protecting our patients from pathogens, including their own! Cleaning our hands at these moments prevents pathogens from entering the body, which can have severe health outcomes.
Managers, to help remind your teams to stop and sanitise, download and display the latest hand hygiene posters in your area.
Don’t forget to remove any old or outdated posters and replace them with the latest posters. Remember, all posters displayed in clinical areas must be laminated and pinned to noticed boards and not displayed on walls using blu tack.
If you need a refresher, you can find the Monash Health Hand Hygiene Procedure on PROMPT.
For a reminder of how quickly germs can move around the hospital, watch this short video, Wash your Hands – it just makes sense (1.35). Technology might have changed, but the message is still the same!
This week is International Infection Prevention Week and offers us the opportunity to recognise the important role of infection prevention professionals globally. This article is part of a series of spotlights on key infection prevention topics to remind you about the importance of maintaining safe infection prevention practices in your everyday roles and responsibilities. Keep an eye out for the next spotlight on clinical equipment cleaning!
Approved by Professor Rhonda Stuart.