Healthcare& HospitalHygiene Hand hygienemonitoring
Saving patient lives and natural resources at the same time?With the Ophardt Hy- gieneMonitoring System(OHMS) theman- ufacturer claims you can do both. OHMS is a complete hardware and software system solution to improve hand hygiene practices in hospitals and clinics, thus reducing noso- comial infections sustainably. Disinfecting the hands is themost effec-
tive weapon against the transmission of pathogens - but compliance inmedical fa- cilities is often low. This is where the OHMS comes in: the dispenser captures every op- eration andmeasures the amount of disin- fectant used. The systemmeasures every single ‘hand hygiene event’ without record- ing the individual’s identity. Furthermore, the Ophardt HygieneMoni-
toring Systemregisters the exact time the dispenser is operated. The data is trans- mitted securely via existingWiFi network to a central server. The user can then decide what he would like to review.
As a unique feature, the energy required
for data transfer is generated in the dis- penser by the user. No batteries or addi- tional power supply is required. The system also providesmonitoring of dispenser func- tionality with an alarmfunction and auto- matic warning when bottle exchange is required. In this way, ‘empty to refill’ re- ports can be automatically generated to further improve the hospital’s qualityman- agement. “As one one-stop solution provider for
hand hygienemonitoring, we develop,man- ufacture, service and support all hardware (including the dispenser), software and user interface aspects of our products in-house,” said Kristina Ophardt, productmanager hy- giene compliance solutions. “OHMS offers our customers a distinct advantage over other products, which are designedmerely as ‘add-ons’ or combine products fromdif- ferentmanufacturers."
www.ophardt.com
Using specialist cleaning to combat infections
Karl King, training and product developmentmanager at Rentokil Specialist Hygiene, reports.
Healthcare environments in the UK are subject to strict legislation around the standards of hygiene thatmust bemain- tained. Providing a clean and safe environ- ment ensures the risk to patients from healthcare associated infections (HAI) is re- duced to aminimum. But the sheer num- ber of areas that have to be kept clean and the vast numbers of people passing through these areas (many of whomare ill) make treating hospitals effectively a diffi- cult task. Specialist cleaning in hospitals can be
challenging, not only because of the com- plex nature of the task at hand, but also be- cause of the need to keep disruption to a minimum. All services need to be ade- quately resourced and clearly defined through a strategic cleaning plan.Whilst cleaning schedules and routines need to be put in place, it is vital that it does not affect service delivery or result in having beds un- available. The risks of cross-contamination frompeople sharing contact points are huge and these can normally be reduced by having areas ready for use as soon as is possible. Specialist cleaning needs to be carried
out in hospitals on a regular basis to re- duce the number of cross-infections occur- ring. Ensuring public areas are regularly sanitised can have a big influence on the numbers of infections acquired within any unit. Sanitising should be undertaken as soon as a known infection is presented by a patient or visitor, and if that person is known to have inhabited a certain area, then that area should always be sanitised prior to reuse. Best results are achieved through a combination of daily cleaning and infection control by the healthcare unit, backed up with regular sanitisation by spe- cialist service providers. Along withmeticulous cleaning regimes,
good hand hygiene is also critical in pre- venting cross contamination between peo-
ple. Providing adequate hand washing and hand drying facilities is crucial, as is pro- viding hand sanitisers for people to use outside the washroomenvironment. Good hand hygiene standards are vital if infec- tious organisms are not to be left on shared contact areas where they would present an infection or contamination risk for other users. In 2005, the Department of Health funded a ‘Clean your Hands’ campaign, raising awareness of hand hygiene in hos- pitals. A study recently published by the BMJ showed that the amount of soap and hand gel being used since the campaign launched has tripled, and rates ofMSRA has halved since that time. Despite having regular deep cleaning
regimes and good hand sanitisation poli- cies, hospitals are still at risk frominfec- tious outbreaks. This has been evident this past winter, with Norovirus outbreaks clos- ing down some hospital wards and leading others to stop visiting hours in order to pre- vent further infections. According to the Health Protection Agency there was a 72% rise in closed hospital wards during the winter, causingmajor disruptions to hospi- tal services. To combat such outbreaks, hospitals and healthcare practices need to partner up with a specialist cleaning provider who can sanitise areas quickly and efficiently. Technicians need to be highly trained, well equipped, and very experi- enced in providing special disinfection services. A company with service centres located throughout the UK is key to being able to provide specialised services quickly and efficiently, wherever they are needed. All staff in a healthcare environment
should participate in the prevention and control of infection in hospitals. Partnering up with the right specialist cleaning provider could be the first step towards a cleaner, safer hospital and combating the threat of potentially deadly diseases.
www.rentokil-hygiene.co.uk
www.cleaninghub.net l APRIL 2013 l C&M l 31
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