Hand hygiene in small animal veterinary practices – more than a lick and a promise

Dr Angela Willemsen¹, Associate Professor  Rowland  Cobbold², Dr Justine Gibson², Dr Kathryn Wilks^1,3, Associate Professor Simon Reid¹

¹School of Public Health, The University Of Queensland, Herston, Australia
²School of Veterinary Science, The University Of Queensland, Gatton, Australia
³Sunshine Coast University Hospital, , Australia

Introduction

Hand hygiene (HH) is recognised as an important infection prevention and control practice to reduce the risk of pathogen transfer. Australian human health care facilities have allocated considerable resources and training to improve HH compliance. Small animal veterinary practices also have a need to demonstrate good HH. Formal HH training and auditing does not occur in veterinary practice.

Methods

A pragmatic pilot trial of educational interventions was conducted in six heterogeneous small animal veterinary practices. Hand hygiene compliance was evaluated using the World Health Organisation 5 Moments for HH.

Results

Hand hygiene compliance was low (14%) pre-intervention and improved to 46% after a six-week intervention. Compliance dropped to 35% six-months post intervention. All five moments improved immediately post intervention. There was a significant difference between pre and immediately post-intervention with HH compliance for Moment 5 – after touching a patient’s surroundings, at the 95% level of confidence. There were no significant differences between the other moments. Moment 3 – After a procedure and body fluid risk and Moment 4 – After touching a patient, were consistently higher than other moments in all audit periods.

Conclusion

Trial results suggest that a human based HH intervention program may be suitable in veterinary settings. A dedicated staff member to promote HH training and support staff is necessary to maximise awareness and improve practices. Management support and dedicated time for staff to attend training can help with HH uptake. The improvements in HH compliance are encouraging and illustrate improvement can occur with education.

Biography:

Angela Willemsen is a small animal veterinarian and recently completed her PhD investigating infection control practices in small animal veterinary workplaces. Her vision is to improve the delivery of everyday infection control in a practical way to reduce the risk of healthcare acquired infections, zoonotic diseases and antimicrobial resistance. Her interest in infection control developed with her first profession as a Registered Nurse where she identified that while veterinary care was unique, there were many similarities with human health care. She hopes to positively influence veterinary practitioners to understand how good infection control can improve patient care and workplace safety.