As many in Ontario know, there is a huge push to increase hand hygiene compliance in amongst health-care workers to curb health care associated infections. What happens when the sinks we clean our hands in are actually the culprit? A recent report suggests that the sinks in a Toronto surgical intensive care unit actually harboured Pseudomonas aeruginosa, in the form of “biofilm”. Even more interesting was the finding that water splashing directly into the drain actually propelled these bacteria up to one one metre.
Read the CBC article here
Some important lessons I learned from this:
A. Probably not the best to use a patient sink to wash hands- Instead, (unless hands are visibly soiled) use the hand sanitizer immediately, and then find a designated hand wash sink outside of the patients environment. If you have to use a patient sink- perhaps it would be best to use a alcohol based hand sanitizer afterwards (ask infection control)
B. Use that alcohol sanitizer at point of care- before you begin care! You can pick something up in the short distance from the door to the bed.
C. Don’t prepare dressings on the countertop next to a sink and if gloves are sitting next to a sink… they are likely contaminated
D. Think about what gets dumped down a patient sink….. urinals (patients may not see a problem with this) and basins come to mind. Yuk!
Further Reading:
- Outbreak of Multidrug-Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa Colonization and Infection Secondary to Imperfect Intensive Care Unit Room Design (Abstract)
- Prevention of irritant contact dermatitis among health care workers by using evidence-based hand hygiene practices: a review.
- Hand Hygiene Fact Sheet for Health Care settings (PIDAC)
How do you deal with the constant use of the alcohol wash?
They are calling for its use before and after every patient we see now. Something I agree with but its rough on the hands!
We use the foam cleansers where I work. Apparently they are designed to be better for your skin then soap….at least that is what they tell us
I still end up with dry lizard skin at the end of a shift.
I somehow ended up on your blog today, while doing everything in my power to avoid studying for exams, and I really enjoyed reading it!
Thank you for this fascinating post! I thought I would share another website with you concerning Ontario’s hospitals.
The OHA officially launched a new website called myhospitalcare.ca. For the first time, this website allows members of the public to genuinely understand how their local hospital is performing, and takes what used to be complex and dense information and translates it into clear, plain language that is easy to access, read and understand.
To learn more, please register for this free webinar.