Background
:
Hand
-
mediated transmission of micro
-
organisms is a major
factor for the spread of
healthca
re associated infections.
Ensuring that
optimal hand hygiene (HH) practices are followed
remains a challenge and
monitoring remains a key activity in measuring healthcare professional’s
adherence to HH protocols. This paper describes the role that methods
from
engineering, specifically morphological analysis (MA), can play in developing
and improving the efficacy of HH monitoring in healthcare.
MA
is a process
of considering the required functions or features of a system and then
identifying all possible me
thods to fulfil them. Considering the different methods to achieve each function or feature results in new ways of
addressing a challenging problem and can pave the way for innovative
system design.
Method:
Using an expert discussion panel of infection pre
vention
specialists, MA was applied as a means to discuss the current system of HH
monitoring and explore future system improvements.
Findings:
The discussion revealed themes of; The adequacy of current HH
monitoring systems; Goals of HH monitoring improv
ement; Access to HH
monitoring data for patients; The value of MA to identify new possibilities for
HH monitoring.
Discussion
:
The findings specifically demonstrate the application of an
engineering method that has highlighted how condition monitoring may
improve the HH monitoring process along.
Conclusion
:
Condition monitoring measures (such as staff satisfaction) may
be a useful addition to existing measures to monitor hand hygiene and give
meaning for recipients of HH feedback data and also indicate a
potential
change in HH behaviour.