American journal of infection control
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Am J Infect Control · Oct 2018
Covering the instrument table decreases bacterial bioburden: An evaluation of environmental quality indicators.
Covering the instrument table during surgery may decrease contamination. We hypothesized that (1) covering the instrument table in an operating room (OR) during static periods of nonuse and dynamic periods of active use would dramatically decrease the bacterial bioburden on the table, and (2) the use of sterile plastic table covers would be equivalent to sterile impervious paper covers in reducing the bioburden in a dynamic environment. ⋯ A significant decrease in bacterial bioburden on the instrument table when the table was covered during static and dynamic periods was observed, suggesting the utility for covering the instrument table during periods of nonuse and during active surgeries.
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Am J Infect Control · Sep 2018
Multicenter StudyGuiding hand hygiene interventions among future healthcare workers: implications of knowledge, attitudes, and social influences.
Medical students in their clinical years play an important role in healthcare delivery, yet poor levels of hand hygiene (HH) compliance in this population raise the risk for propagating nosocomial infections. To date, there has been a lack of dedicated interventions showing sustainable improvements in HH in this population. ⋯ Our results call for a multifaceted approach to improve HH compliance among medical students, by ensuring adequate HH supplies/hand sanitizers, providing HH training in curricula, and effecting a cultural change mediated by professional modeling and open communication.
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Am J Infect Control · Sep 2018
Environmental effectiveness of pulsed-xenon light in the operating room.
Manual cleaning and disinfection of the operating room (OR) environment may be inadequate due to human error. No-touch technologies, such as pulsed-xenon ultraviolet light (PX-UV), can be used as an adjunct to manual cleaning processes to reduce surface contamination in the OR. This article reports the cumulative results from 23 hospitals across the United States that performed microbiologic validation of PX-UV disinfection after manual cleaning. ⋯ When used after the manual cleaning process, the PX-UV device significantly reduced contamination on high-touch surfaces in the OR.
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Am J Infect Control · Aug 2018
Speaking up about hand hygiene failures: A vignette survey study among healthcare professionals.
Speaking up by healthcare professionals (HCPs) is an important resource to reduce risks to patient safety. Due to complex tradeoffs, HCPs are often reluctant to voice their concerns. A survey investigated HCPs' likelihood to speak up. ⋯ Infection control interventions should empower HCPs to speak up about non-adherence with prevention practices by addressing authority gradients and risk perceptions and by focusing on resignation.
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Am J Infect Control · Jul 2018
A multimodal intervention to improve hand hygiene compliance in a tertiary care center.
Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are a major threat to patient safety worldwide. HAIs are mainly transmitted via the hands of healthcare workers (HCWs), and HCW compliance with hand hygiene (HH) practices is reportedly low. Therefore, multimodal interventions are needed to develop effective HH improvement strategies. In this study, we assessed the effect of multimodal interventions on improvement of HH compliance. ⋯ Significant improvement in HH compliance can be achieved through a systematic, multidimensional intervention involving all types of HCWs.