Whittington Health launches new hand hygiene campaign
Trust calls for staff, hospital visitors and patients to join the ‘Whittington Warriors’ in the fight against infections
Whittington Health is stepping up its fight against health associated infections (HCAI) by launching a new campaign to urge people in the hospital to stop and clean their hands.
Under the banner – Join the Whittington Warriors - the campaign encourages staff, visitors and patients to practice quick and easy hand hygiene measures to reduce health associated infections and save lives.
Around one third of health associated infections are preventable and good hand hygiene is the main way of reducing infections.
Alison Kett, deputy director of nursing at Whittington Health, said: “Our message in our Whittington Warriors campaign is simple. By following quick and easy hand hygiene measures, our staff, visitors and patients are helping to stop the spread of bacterial infections such as MRSA and clostridium difficile. Effective hand hygiene is the main way of reducing infections and can help to save lives.”
The campaign features new hand hygiene stations at the hospital’s entrances and eye-catching posters featuring staff from across the Trust urging people to “Join the Whittington Warriors” by cleaning their hands.
There are alcohol gel dispensers and posters showing the seven steps of effective hand washing technique at ‘stations’ across the hospital.
Whittington Health is stepping up its fight against health associated infections (HCAI) by launching a new campaign to urge people in the hospital to stop and clean their hands.
Under the banner – Join the Whittington Warriors - the campaign encourages staff, visitors and patients to practice quick and easy hand hygiene measures to reduce health associated infections and save lives.
Around one third of health associated infections are preventable and good hand hygiene is the main way of reducing infections.
Alison Kett, deputy director of nursing at Whittington Health, said: “Our message in our Whittington Warriors campaign is simple. By following quick and easy hand hygiene measures, our staff, visitors and patients are helping to stop the spread of bacterial infections such as MRSA and clostridium difficile. Effective hand hygiene is the main way of reducing infections and can help to save lives.”
The campaign features new hand hygiene stations at the hospital’s entrances and eye-catching posters featuring staff from across the Trust urging people to “Join the Whittington Warriors” by cleaning their hands.
There are alcohol gel dispensers and posters showing the seven steps of effective hand washing technique at ‘stations’ across the hospital.
Gel your hands
Visitors to hospital are asked to put gel on their hands every time they enter the hospital, and before and after visiting patients. There are hand gel dispensers at the hospital entrances and at the entrance to every ward.
Soap and water
The hand gel works well against many viruses and bacteria. However, it does not kill some germs that cause diarrhoea, so use soap and water to clean your hands after using the toilet, before eating or drinking, handling medication or if your loved ones have diarrhoea. You should also wash with soap and water if they are visibly dirty.
World Health Organization
Whittington Health staff are encouraged to follow the World Health Organization’s (WHO) guidelines for hand hygiene for healthcare staff, called the five moments for hand hygiene. The guidelines were developed by WHO to identify the moments during patient care when staff need to clean their hands to prevent healthcare associated infection (HCAI).
Dr Jo Sauvage, Islington Clinical Commissioning Group vice chair and a local GP, said: “Hand hygiene is the most important method of preventing and controlling infection. By washing your hands you can prevent Norovirus, flu, MRSA and diarrhoea and vomiting- this also ensures that you are not spreading any germs you may have to others around you.”
You can Tweet about Whittington Health’s hand hygiene campaign by using the hashtag #WhittingtonWarriors. Visitors are asked to send photos of themselves with the ‘stop’ sign as seen on the posters.
Last updated31 Jan 2014