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European experts address how simple practices, clean procedures enhance patient safety
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Because surgical hand hygiene program is one of many essential surgical safety steps – including performing right site surgery on the right patient at the right time – a panel of experts from Europe and the United States discussed it in a symposium and urged orthopaedic surgeons to adopt an aggressive surgical hand hygiene program.
We have known for years that programs in orthopaedics that focus on safety can make a difference in patient care, according to Didier Pittet, MD, MS, CBE, who spoke during the session. He is the founder of the WHO Clean Care is Safer Care campaign.
Using an alcohol-based hand rub, a practice used at Pittet’s hospital since 1994, is needed at the point of care, where orthopaedic surgeons are visiting their patients during rounds or during wound care.
“We still see some surgeons who sort of do it too fast. Today we are doing it in most places with alcohol-based hand rub, which allows [you] to go a little faster than with soap and water, but still needs several steps to be performed appropriately with a volume of alcohol that would be large enough to cover all surfaces appropriately,” said Pittet, who is professor of medicine, hospital epidemiologist and director of the infection control programme and WHO Collaborating Centre on Patient Safety at the University of Geneva Hospitals and Clinics, in Geneva.
“It is clear that cleaning hands with alcohol-based hand rub, even if it only takes 20 seconds, is absolutely critical before patient contact, as well as after patient contact, and before contact with clean procedures and following contact with biological fluids, which is rare but can still happen,” he said.
Pittet and a colleague observed hand hygiene practices at their hospital in December 1994 and then implemented, over the next 3 years, a hand hygiene program at the University Hospital of Geneva.
“Our program actually proved the benefit of switching from soap and water washing to alcohol-based hand rubbing in hospitals, and now this program has been endorsed by the World Health Organization and the campaign is currently ongoing in 171 of the 194 countries of the United Nations,” he said.
Among the other presentations, Frederick M. Azar, MD, president of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), presented information on the effectiveness of his organization’s wrong-site surgery prevention program introduced in 1997. AAOS is the guest nation for this year’s EFORT Congress.
Pierre Hoffmeyer, MD, who co-moderated the session with Manuel Cassiano-Neves, MD, president of EFORT, said, “The AAOS has been a leader in wrong-site surgery and surgical checklists.”
Reference:
Pittet D. Symposium: Patient safety — Clean care is safe care. Presented at: 15th EFORT Congress — A Combined Programme in Partnership with the BOA; 4-6 June, 2014; London.
Source info:
Didier Pittet, MD, MS, CBE, can be reached at Rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, 1205 Geneva, Switzerland.
Disclosure:
Pittet has no relevant financial disclosures.