Filed under: practice | Tags: hand sanitation, hand washing, healthcare, infection, sink, washing
Healthcare practitioners perform amazing feats every day. They transplant organs, cure cancer and revive hearts that have stopped beating.
One task they do not perform consistently is washing their hands. Sinks are plentiful and the benefits of proper hand hygiene are widely known, yet research shows that healthcare practitioners wash their hands less than 10% as often as they should.
Healthcare providers list inconvenient sink locations, lack of supplies, lack of time, dry hands and forgetfulness as primary reasons for the industry’s abysmal handwashing compliance.
Research has clearly shown that proper hand sanitation reduces the spread of healthcare-associated infections (HAI). So, what is the cost of poor hand sanitation?
Some insurance providers have stopped paying for the treatment of certain HAIs knowing that they were likely cause by poor hand sanitation.
Aside from the financial, resource and health costs associated with treating these infections, the CDC reports almost 2 million HAIs each year in the U.S. Of those infected, roughly 100,000 die. In fact, as many patients die from these infections “as from AIDS, breast cancer, and auto accidents combined,” according to the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths.
Knowing the consequences on human life alone, does any excuse for not washing one’s hands really hold water?
Leave a Comment so far
Leave a comment
