Evaluation of hand hygiene compliance over the years, in an intensive care unit of a north Delhi hospital preparing for accreditation: A 3-year study

Tanisha Bharara; Renu Gur; Shalini Duggal; Vandana Chugh

doi:10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_1050_19

Evaluation of hand hygiene compliance over the years, in an intensive care unit of a north Delhi hospital preparing for accreditation: A 3-year study

J Family Med Prim Care. 2020 Apr 30;9(4):1939-1943. doi: 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_1050_19. eCollection 2020 Apr.

Authors

Tanisha Bharara¹, Renu Gur¹, Shalini Duggal¹, Vandana Chugh²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Microbiology, Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital, Delhi, India.
² Department of Anaesthesia, Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital, Delhi, India.

Abstract

Introduction: World Health Organization (WHO) initiated a global movement to achieve universal health coverage (UHC). Hand hygiene (HH) is critical for achieving UHC as it is a practical and evidence-based approach with a gaugeable impact on the quality of care and patient safety in healthcare.

Material and methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted in an intensive care unit of a government hospital spanning a period of 3 years. WHO single-observer direct observation technique was used and HH compliance was noted. The results were compared over the years since the hospital was preparing to undergo a National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare (NABH) assessment.

Results: The overall compliance significantly increased over the years (P < 0.0001). HH compliance for hand rub (HR) and hand wash (HW) was compared among doctors, nurses, and ICU technicians, respectively. HR compliance remained more or less the same over the years (P = 0.4738) while HW compliance significantly improved (P < 0.0001).

Conclusions: This is one of the first studies from our country evaluating HH compliance over the years in a healthcare setup undergoing accreditation. During the course of the study, we observed a significant increase in HH compliance. This can be attributed to the unflinching support of our hospital's administration and relentless efforts of our infection control team. This is our first step initiative towards improving HH and thus preventing healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs) in our setup.

Keywords: Direct observation technique; healthcare-associated infections; national accreditation board for hospitals and healthcare; universal health coverage; world health organization.