Promoting and sustaining a hospital-wide, multifaceted hand hygiene program resulted in significant reduction in health care-associated infections

BACKGROUND Hand hygiene is a crucial and cost-effective method to prevent health care–associated infections, and in 2009, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued guidelines to encourage and standardize hand hygiene procedures. However, a common challenge in health care settings is low adherence, leading to low handwashing quality. Recent advances in machine learning and wearable sensing have made it possible to accurately measure handwashing quality for the purposes of training, feedback, or accreditation. OBJECTIVE We measured the accuracy of a sensor armband (Myo armband) in detecting the steps and duration of the WHO procedures for handwashing and handrubbing. METHODS We recruited 20 participants (10 females; mean age 26.5 years, SD 3.3). In a semistructured environment, we collected armband data (acceleration, gyroscope, orientation, and surface electromyography data) and video data from each participant during 15 handrub and 15 handwash sessions. We evaluated the detection accuracy for different armband placements, sensor configurations, user-dependent vs user-independent models, and the use of bootstrapping. RESULTS Using a single armband, the accuracy was 96% (SD 0.01) for the user-dependent model and 82% (SD 0.08) for the user-independent model. This increased when using two armbands to 97% (SD 0.01) and 91% (SD 0.04), respectively. Performance increased when the armband was placed on the forearm (user dependent: 97%, SD 0.01; and user independent: 91%, SD 0.04) and decreased when placed on the arm (user dependent: 96%, SD 0.01; and user independent: 80%, SD 0.06). In terms of bootstrapping, user-dependent models can achieve more than 80% accuracy after six training sessions and 90% with 16 sessions. Finally, we found that the combination of accelerometer and gyroscope minimizes power consumption and cost while maximizing performance. CONCLUSIONS A sensor armband can be used to measure hand hygiene quality relatively accurately, in terms of both handwashing and handrubbing. The performance is acceptable using a single armband worn in the upper arm but can substantially improve by placing the armband on the forearm or by using two armbands. CLINICALTRIAL

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Knowledge evaluation of hand hygiene and infectious diseases in lebanon

Coronaviruses ◽

10.2174/2666796702666210114105558 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 02 ◽

Author(s):

Jana Taleb ◽

Najwa Sankari ◽

Maya Alaa Dine Kassem ◽

Rabih Roufayel ◽

Seifedine Kadry

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Hand Hygiene ◽

Simple Procedure ◽

Severity Of Illness ◽

Hand Washing ◽

Healthcare Facilities ◽

Viral Particles ◽

Hygiene Measures ◽

Cross Transmission ◽

Health Care Associated Infections

Purpose: Hand washing, also known as hand hygiene, is a simple procedure used for cleaning and cleansing hands for eliminating soil, dirt, and germs including microorganisms such are bacterial or viral particles. In the absence of water and soap, cinder can be used as an alternative method for cleaning hands. Hand hygiene is an essential part that needs to be carefully followed in the infection control protocols. The expanding loads of Health-Care Associated Infections (HCAIs) and the increasing levels of both treatment complexity and severity of illness synchronized by multi-drug resistant (MDR) pathogen infections, health care practitioners are focusing on the basic and most essential facts of disease preventions by implementing the basic and simple cleaning measures including hand hygiene measures. According to healthcare facilities, many scientific evidences support the observation that hand hygiene or hand washing if properly implemented, can decrease and eliminate the risk factors of cross-transmission infections. Method: The data was collected using a self-administrated survey which included 10 questions, constructed using the monkey survey website. The survey was send by email and collected from 100 participants of different ages. Results: Our results indicated that the majority of our population under study is considered healthy, representing good educational levels. Conclusion: The majority revealed advanced knowledge and understanding about the key moments to hand washing procedures.

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