GSS Hand Hygiene Thumbs Up

well done, gss staff!..

Hand hygiene audits and annual demonstrations are part of normal life in this workplace. For the first time, staff were invited to do a survey about whether hand hygiene was a regular part of their day. Survey results were a big ‘thumbs up’.

A brief survey asked staff if they had ready access to soap and water and hand sanitizer and had taken hand hygiene training. Then the GSS procedure guidelines for when to wash or sanitize hands were listed and staff selected how often (from 0 to 100%) they met those guidelines. A target of 80% was set for an overall ‘comply’ response average. Over 300 staff were invited to complete the survey with a good response rate of 76 staff or 25% completing the survey.

Results Summary

Hand hygiene supply availability and access to training were consistently above the 80% target:

• Soap and water readily available - 100%

• Alcohol rub readily available – 91%

• Took part in formal hand hygiene training – 95%

Compliance with GSS procedures on when to perform hand hygiene also exceeded the target:

• Most respondents, 73 or 96% complied with guidelines from 80% to 100% of the time

• 3 respondents complied 70% of the time but that was the lowest compliance level chosen

Respondents were invited to explain what kept them meeting hand hygiene guidelines 100% of the time.  The most frequent mentioned factors mentioned were forgetting (7), no time or product available (4), or hands getting irritated or feeling sticky (3).

These survey results are excellent. Hand hygiene is one of the most effective, low-cost ways to prevent infections in health care settings. To help reinforce these excellent practices, watch for an upcoming poster highlighting the importance of ongoing hand hygiene.

A big thank you to all staff for helping to keep our workplace infection free.