RLO: Hand Hygiene

Resources

Title/link	Description
Clean your hands	A NHS campaign aimed at healthcare institutions, run by the National Patient Safety Agency.
Guidelines for Preventing Hospital-acquired infections (PDF)	Department of Health (2001). The epic Project: Developing National Evidence-based Guidelines for Preventing Healthcare associated Infections. Phase 1: Guidelines for Preventing Hospital-acquired Infections. Journal of Hospital Infection (2001) 47(Supplement).
Handwashing	An animated tutorial on handwashing, published on the website of the Nursing Standard, which also has a number of articles on MRSA and infection control.
Wipe it out	A major RCN infection control campaign aimed particularly at the eradication of MRSA, with lots of resources and advice for health care workers and patients, including hand hygiene technique.

Glossary

Air-borne - Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) is present in dust particles and skin scales which spread in the air.
Blood – is a reservoir of viruses such as Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C.
Bodily Fluids – infections such as Clostridium difficile are present in diarrhoea and Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) can be found in wounds, sputum and urine.
Cross-infection – occurs when an infection spreads from one site to another. In a healthcare setting, cross-infection occurs when Patient A becomes infected with the germs from Patient B.
Direct Contact – Micro-organisms may transfer onto the hands of healthcare workers if they touch a reservoir of infection, for example a blood spillage or an infected wound. The hands become transiently contaminated, and further direct contact with a susceptible patient surface, for example an open wound or a cannula site, may result in transfer of the disease-causing microbes.
Droplet – The common cold, flu and pulmonary tuberculosis are spread by droplet infection, for example in coughs and sneezes.
Faecal-oral Route - Enteric diseases spread by faecal-oral ingestion include Clostridium difficile, viral gastroenteritis and Salmonella.
HAI – stands for Healthcare Acquired Infection. It refers to the introduction of disease-causing micro-organisms as a direct result of healthcare. The transfer of these micro-organisms between patients is commonly due to direct contact and subsequent carriage of the micro-organisms by the hands.
Pathogen – disease causing micro-organism.
Skin – Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) and Streptococcus A are common micro-organisms causing infections on wounds and skin.
Transient Contamination – occurs when hands pick up disease-causing micro-organisms and carry them temporarily. They can be washed off, killed with alcohol-based handrub or transferred to a susceptible site on a patient, for example a cannula site or an open wound, thus causing disease.
Wounds – Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) and Streptococcus A are common micro-organisms causing infections on wounds and skin.

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