We all hope that when a person enters our hospital they come out better than when they went in.
But, that’s not the case in many healthcare facilities. At DeKalb Medical we can make a difference in our patients health and safety by cleaning our hands as we enter and leave patient rooms — it can be the difference between life or death for the patient.
Why is hand hygiene so important?
Patients are at risk for getting an infection while in the hospital and these infections could lead to death. Germs that can cause serious infections are in every healthcare facility. They can be on your healthcare providers’ hands and also your own. When everyone practices safe hand hygiene, we protect our staff, patients and their families from spreading germs.
Every day, we want to make sure we deliver high-quality care to our patients.That’s why we are implementing a clean hands campaign to help improve hand hygiene, decrease hospital infection rates, and encourage patients to engage with their healthcare provider about the safety of hand hygiene. The campaign is called, “Clean Hands Start Here! Ask Me How!”
We are asking for your help with doing 2 things:
- Clean your hands as you enter and leave patient rooms.
- Speak up for clean hands. Everyone who enters and leaves the room is accountable. It’s OK to ask for clean hands. While at work, you can give a signal to doctors and colleagues by rubbing your hands together. If you are ever a patient, it’s OK to ask your healthcare providers to clean their hands. This simple suggestion could save a life.
By working together to improve hand hygiene, we can increase the safety of our staff, patients and their families!