HEALTHCARE & HOSPITAL FACILITIES HANDING OUT HELP
Chris Wakefield, Managing Director UK & Ireland, GOJO Industries-Europe, discusses how the correct hand hygiene system can help healthcare workers maintain skin health, without compromising on compliance.
Facilities managers in hospitals and healthcare facilities bear a weighty responsibility. They are required to mitigate the risks of bacteria and keep buildings clean. Preventing the spread of healthcare associated infections (HCAIs) is of the highest priority, especially in light of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Various strategies must be brought together to maintain a clean and healthy medical environment, such as regular and thorough surface cleaning regimes, PPE (personal protective equipment), and of course good hand hygiene. However, the latter can be problematic, given that success relies on everybody on the premises cleaning their hands effectively.
FMs must therefore consider how they can best influence positive hand hygiene behaviour and maximise compliance. Key to this is understanding the barriers – for healthcare workers, who must wash or sanitise hands repeatedly during a shift, skin health is a primary concern.
According to a skin health survey by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), 93% of clinicians surveyed have had at least one skin issue in the last 12 months, with ‘dryness’ the most common symptom experienced. Over half of respondents also experienced ‘redness’ and ‘itching’, with the back of the hands and in-between the fingers the most common sites where symptoms developed
Some of the most common self-reported causes of hand dermatitis were soap usage and excessive hand hygiene actions, including alcohol hand gel use. Worryingly, the study found that the vast majority (78%) of respondents did not disclose skin problems to anyone in the workplace when symptoms developed, with over half (53%) having to limit or stop using recommended hand hygiene practices, such as use of anti-bacterial gel, due to concerns that this may aggravate their skin condition.
Making hand health a priority Engaging a trusted hand hygiene supplier can make all the difference when it comes to building compliance and caring for hard-working hands. For example, at GOJO, we work in partnership with healthcare managers to offer a 360° programme. This encompasses effective, but skin- kind products, state of the art dispensers, and specialist support, such as RCN accredited training, as well as eye- catching signage and informative leaflets with skincare advice and handwashing techniques.
When it comes to soap and hygienic hand rubs, formulation matters to safeguard hand health. Solutions should be fully virucidal, with short contact times, but also
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be enriched with moisturising agents to prevent skin from becoming dry or irritated.
As well as washing hands effectively, they must also be rinsed and thoroughly dried. Many don’t realise that water is a potential irritant, which may penetrate relatively easily through the outermost layer of the skin (stratum corneum). Frequent exposure to water causes swelling and shrinking of the stratum corneum, and can lead to dermatitis.
Where skin is not visibly soiled, the WHO recommends healthcare professionals choose sanitising gel as an alternative to soap and water, which has actually been found to be a friendlier choice for skin – PURELL Hygienic Hand Rub, for example, has been clinically proven to maintain skin health.
Finally, healthcare workers should be encouraged to use hand cream at regular intervals during their shift. Frequently applying a moisturiser, like GOJO HAND MEDIC Professional Skin Conditioner, will rehydrate and replenish oils in the skin, helping to maintain its natural protective barrier, and preventing dry, damaged hands.
By taking steps to improve occupational skin health, healthcare FMs will find that hand hygiene compliance will rise, and in turn HCAIs will naturally fall.
www.gojo.com
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