The Hanover and District Hospital has launched a new program.
It doesn’t matter if you are a nurse, a receptionist, a custodian or a lab technician, all Hospital staff are required to go through the hand hygiene training program.
Vice President of Patient Care Services Reta Sproule says this provincially mandated program is aimed at reducing the number of super bugs that have been spreading in hospitals at an increasing rate.
Over the last five years the number of antibiotic resistant bugs such as MRSA (Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus), VRE (Vancomycin-resistant enteric) and C-diff (c. difficile) have all been on the rise in hospitals across Ontario.
Sproule says hand washing is one of the most effective ways at combating the spread of these super bugs.
She adds that while hand cleansing is already regularly practiced among staff, the training will hopefully make employees even more vigilant about their hand hygiene.
The hospital wants staff to cleanse their hands with a sanitizer before and after they have contact with a patient — each and every time.
She says the Hospital is now required to report its rate of hand washing to the Ministry of Health.
In order to soothe dry chapped hands from all that cleansing, staff will be provided with hand lotion.
The Hospital is also encouraging patients and visitors to be more mindful about their own hand hygiene.