In an environment with a myriad of infection risks and vulnerable patients and visitors, it is crucial that hand hygiene protocols are adhered to.

“Stepping Hill is a large hospital, with over 160 consultants and around 1,500 nurses. Considering we work in an environment with a myriad of infection risks and vulnerable patients and visitors, it is crucial that hand hygiene protocols are adhered to.”

Safeguarding patients, visitors and employees from infections is critical in healthcare environments. With hands being the main vehicle of transfer of germs, it is increasingly important to invest in the appropriate hand hygiene and skin care solutions.Stepping Hill Hospital in Stockport, Greater Manchester, which is part of the Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, treats over 500,000 patients each year and employs over 5,700 staff, making it the town’s second largest employer. Stepping Hill Hospital, a facility which has been operational for more than a century, provides emergency care as well as general surgery and a range of specialisms, from trauma to stroke care. In order to enhance infection prevention in the hospital and maintain patient safety, the trust chose to partner with hand hygiene and skin care provider Deb to provide bespoke solutions for the healthcare environment. Stepping Hill is a large hospital, with over 160 consultants and around 1,500 nurses.

TACKLING HAND HYGIENE COMPLIANCE IN THE FIGHT AGAINST INFECTIONS IN HEALTHCARE

THREE-PRONGED ATTACK ON GERMS AND POOR SKIN HEALTHAt Stepping Hill, a three-step approach to encouraging hand hygiene and skin care compliance was introduced by Deb: wash, sanitise and restore. Washing with foam soap continues to be the most fundamental step in any healthcare skin programme: apart from removing visible soilings from the hands, the physical action of a good hand washing technique can remove high levels of bacteria and viruses present on the skin.

Foam products also require 36% less product for an effective hand wash compared against the traditional liquid soap. Deb’s one litre cartridge of soap can provide healthcare employees with over 1,400 hand washes, whilst also reducing total water consumption by up to 45%. Considering the current economic climate, where 135 out of 235 NHS

ERADICATING GERMSTo ensure that employees are washing their hands at the correct time, it is crucial that employees are provided with the correct hand hygiene products, and that these products are placed in accessible, critical locations. Kelly explains the process of choosing the appropriate hand hygiene provider: “We were looking for a company that could offer bespoke products that were cost-effective for our environment and benefitted the staff and patients. We had meetings with a number of hand hygiene providers and whittled it down to Deb and another provider. The two companies then held consecutive trials for a total period of four weeks on three departments: Paediatric, Surgical and Medicine. These wards were chosen because it would enable the capture of a diverse audience due to the high throughput of patients, staff and visitors. It was decided that Deb would be Stepping Hill’s chosen provider as the company was able to respond immediately to any changes in product requirement to better meet the needs of both employees and patients.”

www.debgroup.com

ACKNOWLEDGING THE THREATIn a highly sensitive environment such as a hospital, risks can arise from ill patients or from environmental surfaces and medical equipment which contain fluids that could be infectious. For a hospital to avoid falling victim to Healthcare Associated Infections (HCAI’s), germs and bacteria must be contained.

The primary way for HCAI’s to be reduced in healthcare environments is for effective hand hygiene solutions to be provided and effective hand hygiene to be adopted. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has recommended that all healthcare environments follow the ‘5 Moments for Hand Hygiene’ – which outlines that healthcare employees must wash their hands before touching a patient, before clean or aseptic procedures, after body fluid exposure or risk, after touching a patient and after touching patient surroundings.

5 Moments for Hand Hygiene

www.debgroup.com

“As the current contract was due for review we were able to explore alternative providers who could offer a bespoke service. Instead, Deb’s hand wash and Sanitiser are both foam products, which offered a number of benefits to us as an infection prevention team. Firstly, the foam Sanitiser demonstrated that it could dry quickly – an important step in aseptic non-touch technique (ANTT), the training package offered by Deb was comprehensive and the availability of community packs as we aim to standardise across the Trust.”

Kelly Pape, Infection Prevention Nurseproviders are in deficit, it was crucial for Stepping Hill that the chosen solution was also cost-effective1.

Healthcare professionals are consistently placed in environments where the risk of an infection spreading is high – therefore having appropriately placed sanitisers was also a crucial consideration for Stepping Hill. Sanitising can help to reduce bacterial counts on visibly clean hands when access to soap and running water is inconvenient. In contrast to soap and water, an alcohol sanitiser – the preferred choice in healthcare environments.

Deb’s sealed dispensers are located throughout the hospital in critical locations to maximise accessibility for employees, patients and visitors. The trust also decided to utilise Deb’s bespoke dispenser option, meaning the branding in the hospital could be consistent with the dispenser and its aesthetics. The hospital was supplied with two different designs of dispenser, one simple design, and one decidedly more colourful to be placed in the children’s wards (see above) to help engage children in the hand washing process and encourage hand hygiene compliance at a young age.

Children’s Bespoke Dispensers

Bespoke Dispensers

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HEALTHY SKIN ISN’T JUST ABOUT HYGIENESkin must not only be hygienic; it is also crucial that Stepping Hill was provided with skin care solutions to minimise the prevalence of Occupational Skin Disorders (OSD’s) and ensure that the hands appear healthy to patients and visitors. Consequently, the third step which must be adhered to in healthcare environments is providing employees with restore creams.

Commenting on the products, and the feedback received from employees, Kelly added:

“Employees are really pleased with the solutions provided. There have been comments that the hands feel much more hydrated, that the products feel kinder to the hands, and that the dispensers are both eye-catching and easy to use. I have also noticed a higher level of compliance with regards to the application of the restore creams.” Kelly Pape, Infection Prevention Nurse

Before Deb implemented its solutions, the infection prevention team found that the restore creams were untouched. Deb’s restorative creams have been specially formulated to moisturise, nourish and condition the skin, improving its strength and preventing it from becoming dry and damaged.

Deb ensured that the importance of restorative creams were reiterated to all employees in order to reduce the prevalence of OSD’s.

Restore Creams

Cutan Moisturising CreamFragrance-free, dermatologically tested and hypoallergenic moisturising cream

Deb also provided employees at Stepping Hill with hand hygiene pocket guides and ‘5 Moments for Hand Hygiene’ lanyards to ensure that compliancy continues. Deb advised the hospital to properly utilise the promotion stand outside of the trust restaurant to capture the attention of patients, visitors and staff – further helping to address the importance of hand hygiene.

www.debgroup.com

Kelly concluded:

With Deb’s unparalleled solutions in place, healthcare professionals at Stepping Hill now have a fresh outlook on hand hygiene and skin care, and are able to ensure that they protect themselves, patients and visitors from the risk that health care associated infection can present.

“Deb has worked tirelessly and efficiently to overcome any challenges faced to ensure that Stepping Hill is provided with excellent hand hygiene and skin care solutions – working closely with the Trust and Infection Prevention team at the hospital to achieve this” Kelly Pape, Infection Prevention Nurse

AIDING COMPLIANCE THROUGH EFFECTIVE EDUCATION AND TRAINING It has been estimated that 20-40% of all HCAI’s can be prevented by better communication and a stronger implementation of hand hygiene rules and practices2. The majority of employees across all wards and departments received extensive product training before Deb’s solutions were implemented on exactly why hand hygiene compliance is key, and how and when the products should be applied.

1. NHS Improvement, 2. NHS Choices

5 Moments for Hand Hygiene lanyards

Deb LtdDenby Hall Way, Denby, Derbyshire, DE5 8JZ T: 01773 855100 F: 01773 855107 enquiry@deb.co.uk www.debgroup.com

AccreditationsChris Glynn and Kelly Pape

DebGroupUK

@DebGroupUK