Improving hygiene in hospitals is an important goal for many health care providers. While it is common for healthcare facilities to be held accountable for how well they meet standards related to patient care, food safety, and infection control, there isn’t a standard way of measuring them against each other. That said, there are still some ways, like proper sharps disposal, that you can improve your hospital’s hygiene, even if it doesn’t look as pretty as some other hospitals do.
Sharps disposal
Sharps disposal containers are an important part of any hospital’s infection control strategy. They are specifically designed to safely dispose of needles, scalpels, lancets and other sharp medical instruments. For these containers to be effective in preventing disease transmission, they must be puncture resistant and leakproof—allowing for easy cleaning as well as easy use by nurses and other hospital staff members.
These bins should be available throughout the entire hospital so patients don’t have to search for them when they need them.
Iatrogenic transmission
Iatrogenic transmission refers to the spread of bacteria or viruses from one patient to another via medical equipment. It’s especially common in hospitals, where patients are most susceptible and medical staff are in high demand.
It can occur when healthcare providers don’t wash their hands before touching a patient or don’t use proper sterilization techniques when handling instruments such as needles and syringes.
To prevent this kind of infection, healthcare providers need to take special care when handling infectious materials like blood samples or cultures taken from patients’ wounds. They should also practice good hand hygiene by washing their hands after each exam and before leaving a room with an open wound on the patient’s body or face.
Improving hygiene in hospitals
Another critical factor in improving hygiene is education. You should educate your staff and patients about the importance of hand hygiene and the need for staff to be properly trained in this practice. The next step is teaching them how to use soap or disinfectant when washing their hands with water. This will ensure that all germs are removed from their skin before they touch any part of a patient’s body or anything else that might cause cross-contamination between patients.
Cleaning and disinfection
Cleaning and disinfection are essential to the daily operations of any hospital. As such, it is important that staff members understand what cleaning and disinfection are, how they are performed, and when they should be performed.
- Clean: To remove dirt from a surface or object by rubbing or wiping it with water or another liquid solution
- Disinfect: To kill bacteria on a surface by using chemical/surgical means (such as bleach)
Infection prevention staff education
A key step in any infection prevention program is educating staff members on the importance of hand hygiene and how to achieve it. This can be done through formal training courses and seminars, but a more effective approach may be to provide short, frequent reminders through posters or videos.
You should also make sure that your employees are aware of the potential consequences of poor hygiene: if they understand why it’s important, then they’ll be more likely to follow through with their intentions.
Conclusion
Hospital hygiene is a serious matter. However, there are times when things go awry, and patients are exposed to unsanitary conditions or infections because of neglecting basic cleanliness practices at work. With the above-mentioned practical tips, you will be able to improve your hospital’s hygiene levels and ensure that patients have a better chance of recovery after their stay at the hospital.
