Introduction: Clostridium difficile spores, due to their ability to adapt to adverse conditions in a hospital environment, cause enormous difficulties associated with the effective decontamination of surfaces and equipment. Elimination of this pathogen is possible through effective implementation of the hand hygiene procedure by all hospital employees. Scientific research indicates that a properly adopted hand washing procedure reduces the risk of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) by half.
Objective: The aim of the study was to indicate the sources of nosocomial infections, mainly Clostridium difficile infection, and methods to limit them, with particular attention paid to the proper hand hygiene of the medical staff, which plays a fundamental role in the transmission of infections between hospitalized patients.
Brief description of the state of knowledge: Epidemiological studies indicate that about a half of Healthcare Associated Infection (HAI) is caused by microbes that contaminate the hands of medical personnel. One of the main pathogens is Clostridium difficile, which in 2018 in Poland accounted for 41.52% of all detected outbreaks originating from the hospital environment. According to data from WHO,16 million people worldwide die from Healthcare Associated Infection every year, of which approximately 17% constitutes mortality among people infected with Clostridium difficile.
Conclusions: Non-compliance with hand hygiene among members of medical staff contributes to nosocomial infections which are a major cause of disease complications and deaths. Proper hand hygiene is a key measure for reducing this phenomenon. In every medical institution, especially in hospitals, and staff should be reminded about it and trained to perform the correct hand hygiene technique.
Keywords: Clostridium difficile infection; hand hygiene; infection prophylaxis.