Implementation of a hospital wide hand hygiene improvement program, Ba Hospital Fiji
Caroline Nash1, Yvette Samisoni2, Mark Handby1, , 1Aspen Medical, Deakin, ACT, Australia2Health Care (Fiji) Pte Ltd, Suva Fiji
Background
Health Care (Fiji) Pte Ltd, commenced operations at the Ba hospital in April 2022. The Ba hospital provides general inpatient and outpatient services to the Western Division of Fiji.
A hand hygiene improvement program was implemented at the hospital, to enhance knowledge and compliance to support a reduction of health care associated infections and prevalence of antimicrobial resistance.
Method or Actions
The hand hygiene improvement program was a collaboration between the Infection Prevention and Control Unit, Clinical Managers and Environmental Services Supervisors, with implementation support by Clinical Transformation Managers and the training team. The program targeted clinical and non-clinical staff, and included dissemination of information, consistent messaging and visual prompts, auditing and resources including signage, equipment and consumables. Hand hygiene training and education was conducted for all staff that included an online learning module and practical assessment.
Results
The hand hygiene improvement program was well received. Clinical and non-clinical staff embraced the opportunity to strengthen existing knowledge and skills. Many staff displayed immense pride in undertaking the training and expressed the benefits not only to the workplace setting but also to their families and communities. Improvements to hand hygiene compliance were observed post implementation, with the program now embedded into staff induction and periodical competencies.
Conclusion
The program implemented at Ba hospital was well coordinated and exceptionally well received. The pace and methodology of the roll out of the program was appropriate to the context and learning needs of individuals and resulted in enhanced hand hygiene knowledge and compliance.
Biography
Caroline is a Registered Nurse with extensive experience in Public Health, Tropical Medicine, Infection Prevention and Control, Travel Medicine and Immunisation Practice. Caroline is an Advisory Council Member and Fellow of the Faculty of the Australasian College of Tropical Medicine (ACTM) and a steering committee member of the International Society of Travel Medicine (ISTM) Nursing Professional Group. Caroline is employed by Global Health Care Provider Aspen Medical, where she provides clinical support and oversight to a diverse range of business units and projects. She has undertaken a number of international deployments to West Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Pacific.