I'm having a (hand-hygiene) moment
We have been working on a hand hygiene surveillance project here in Iowa City. One of my collaborators, Heather Reisinger, just went through and listed all possible "moments" for hand hygiene listed in the various guidelines, which I've pasted below. Yes, I know there is overlap.
However, I think this list exemplifies why we fail in our infection prevention efforts. How can we take such a simple thing as hand-hygiene and make it this complicated? How can the WHO Guidelines on Hand Hygiene be 270 pages long?!?!?! How can we have directive after directive and keep making it more complicated?
Solution: the Iowa City ONE Moment For Hand Hygiene: After you touch anything
And no, you don't need the before since if you haven't touched anything after you practiced hand hygiene, then there hasn't been a moment for hand hygiene. It is only AFTER you touch something/anything! that you have to practice hand hygiene.
Take off gloves - you touched them, wash your hands!
Did you touch a patient, then use hand rub and then exit the room? Do you need to practice hand hygiene? NO; but did you touch anything on your way out, such as a door handle? If yes - practice hand hygiene!
EOR
16 Moments For Hand Hygiene
___entering patient room
___before touching a patient
___before handling medication
___before clean/antiseptic procedure
___before putting on sterile gloves
___after removing gloves
___after exposure to body fluid
___after visibly dirty/soiled
___moving from a contaminated body site to another body site during the care of the same patient (say that one three times while rubbing your belly and head)
___after touching equipment or patient surroundings
___after touching a patient
___exiting a patient room
___before eating
___after using the restroom
___when preparing food
___after delivering food (if worker touches patient, bed linens, or objects in the room)
However, I think this list exemplifies why we fail in our infection prevention efforts. How can we take such a simple thing as hand-hygiene and make it this complicated? How can the WHO Guidelines on Hand Hygiene be 270 pages long?!?!?! How can we have directive after directive and keep making it more complicated?
Solution: the Iowa City ONE Moment For Hand Hygiene: After you touch anything
And no, you don't need the before since if you haven't touched anything after you practiced hand hygiene, then there hasn't been a moment for hand hygiene. It is only AFTER you touch something/anything! that you have to practice hand hygiene.
Take off gloves - you touched them, wash your hands!
Did you touch a patient, then use hand rub and then exit the room? Do you need to practice hand hygiene? NO; but did you touch anything on your way out, such as a door handle? If yes - practice hand hygiene!
EOR
16 Moments For Hand Hygiene
___entering patient room
___before touching a patient
___before handling medication
___before clean/antiseptic procedure
___before putting on sterile gloves
___after removing gloves
___after exposure to body fluid
___after visibly dirty/soiled
___moving from a contaminated body site to another body site during the care of the same patient (say that one three times while rubbing your belly and head)
___after touching equipment or patient surroundings
___after touching a patient
___exiting a patient room
___before eating
___after using the restroom
___when preparing food
___after delivering food (if worker touches patient, bed linens, or objects in the room)
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