TIP OF THE WEEK
The Importance of Clean Hands
Making sure your hands are clean is one of the best ways to protect you, your residents, your friends, and your family from harmful viruses and bacteria. Hand washing before and after resident contact has been proven to reduce the spread of microorganisms in healthcare facilities. With organisms like Clostridium difficile (C-diff), rancomycin-resistant Enterococci (VRE), and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) present in healthcare facilities, we need to be vigilant with our hand sanitation.
The use of gloves does not eliminate the need for hand hygiene. Likewise, the use of hand hygiene does not eliminate the need for gloves. Gloves reduce hand contamination by 70 to 80 percent, prevent cross-contamination and protect patients and healthcare personnel from infection. Hand washing should occur before and after each patient interaction just as gloves should be changed before and after each patient interaction.
Healthcare personnel should avoid wearing artificial nails and keep natural nails less than one quarter of an inch long if they care for patients at high risk of acquiring infections.
According to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), healthcare facilities should develop and implement a system for measuring improvements in adherence to hand hygiene. Some of the suggested performance indicators include:
- Periodic monitoring of hand hygiene adherence and providing feedback to personnel regarding their performance.
- Monitoring adherence to policies dealing with wearing artificial nails.
- Focused assessment of the adequacy of healthcare personnel hand hygiene when outbreaks of infection occur.
The CDC recommends the following when washing hands with soap and water:
- Wet your hands with clean running water and apply soap. Use warm water if it is available.
- Rub hands together to make a lather and scrub all surfaces.
- Continue rubbing hands for 20 seconds. Need a timer? Imagine singing "Happy Birthday" twice through to a friend!
- Rinse hands well under running water.
- Dry your hands using a paper towel or air dryer. If possible, use your paper towel to turn off the faucet.
RESOURCE SPOTLIGHT
Materials from the CDC to Promote Hand Hygiene in your Healthcare Facility
This page includes PowerPoint slides, posters, and buttons that can be ordered or downloaded to promote good hand hygiene in your facility.
IN THE NEWS
CAN POOR VISION OR HEARING AFFECT YOUR MIND?
October 3, 2007 -- Newswise -- Loss of acuity in hearing and vision is a common accompaniment to aging. While only an estimated one in every 1,000 people under the age of 45 has visual impairment, one in every 13 people over the age of 65 does, according to the American Foundation for the Blind. Hearing suffers a similar decline: among people aged 65 to 74, 23 percent have trouble hearing; after age 75, the figure climbs to nearly 40 percent.
In addition to weakening important connections to the environment, this often-gradual onset of sensory deprivation can have other important effects on the brain. It is associated with the development of mood disorders, and with declines in key aspects of mental functioning. Finding ways to prevent sensory change, and to adjust to impairments if they develop, is important to maintaining mental health as we age, according to Massachusetts General Hospital's Mind, Mood & Memory. Read more >>
CENSUS BUREAU NURSING HOME DATA 'MISLEADING,' LETTER SAYS
October 9, 2007 -- Kaiser Network -- Recent data from the Census Bureau that indicated a decrease in the percentage of elderly U.S. residents who live in nursing homes provide a "highly misleading picture of nursing home care in America today," Alan Rosenbloom, president of the Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care, writes in a USA Today letter to the editor (Rosenbloom, USA Today, 10/5).
According to the data, 7.4 percent of residents ages 75 and older lived in nursing homes in 2006, compared with 8.1 percent in 2000 and 10.2 percent in 1990. However, the "only accurate assessment" of nursing home care would "evaluate the total number of people served annually -- not the number of people served at a specific point in time," according to Rosenbloom.
Read more >>
MEDICARE AGENCY MOVES UP NATIONAL PROVIDER IDENTIFIER DEADLINE
October 9, 2007 -- iHealthBeat -- The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on Oct. 1 moved up the deadline for all hospital and healthcare organizations to transition to the National Provider Identifier on Medicare claims from May 23, 2008, to Jan. 1, 2008, Healthcare IT News reports. Read more >>
ELDERLY DON'T KNOW STROKE SIGNS: STUDY
October 9, 2007 -- Reuters Health -- Despite increased efforts in recent years to educate the public about stroke symptoms, the people most likely to suffer stroke -- the elderly -- still often do not realize they are having a stroke, a new study shows. Read more >>
OHIO KEPRO EVENTS
Guidelines and Coding for Restraints Teleconference
Featuring Carla Brumby and Patsy Strouse, Ohio Department of Health
November 8, 2007 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Dial-in: 1-866-256-9239
INDUSTRY EVENTS
Improving AMI Care IHI Teleconference
October 18, 2007, 1:00 to 2:00pm.
Dial: (800) 860-2442. No PIN code is required. Ask the operator to connect you to the Campaign Office.
Reducing the Use of Alarms in the Nursing Home
Ohio Person-Centered Care Coalition Teleconference
November 6, 2007 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Questions? Call Amanda Trzcinski at 1-614-568-0512 or Leasa Novak at 1-800-385-5080, x2208
The Many Facets of Pain Management: An Integrated Approach
November 7, 2007, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., MetroHealth Medical Center, Cleveland. Call (216) 778-7707 for more information.
Medicare Learning Network:
Learning resources and products for the healthcare professional.
Alzheimer’s Association Training Events
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine Courses
Ohio Department of Health, Technical Assistance Program – New Programs
Ohio Health Care Association Events
An archive of The Nursing Home Weekly Update is available on our Web site. Click here >>
