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Hand hygiene in hospitals is vital but adherence is low

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Graphic of hand hygiene in hospitals
One of the most effective ways to reduce infection in a health care setting is to implement effective, consistent hand hygiene measures.

Washing hands thoroughly and effectively before and after patient, or client contact ensures that doctors, nurses and other carer providers interrupt the chain of transmission between patient and patient, as well as patient and care giver.

However compliance with effective hand hygiene measures are tested daily when health care providers are faced with the dual pressure of time constraints and the need to provide care to a growing number of patients, residents and clients.

The result is that shortcuts are often taken.

It goes without saying that any steps that can be taken to encourage better hand hygiene measures will have a positive impact on our fight against antibiotic resistance as health care associated infections fall.

Have a look at this BBC article relating to hand washing:

Washing hands in cold water ‘as good as hot’

Was this something you were aware of? Has this made you think about hand washing in your workplace?

© University of East Anglia
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Using Infection Control to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance

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