An iPhone app could help significantly improve hand hygiene adherence among healthcare workers, according to research results presented at the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology annual meeting.
iScrub, an iPhone app developed by researchers at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, was used in conjunction with a companion website to report data in real time back to healthcare workers. Over a 34-week time span, healthcare workers were not instructed when or how many times observations on hand hygiene compliance would be conducted.
Using iScrub, hand hygiene observation data was reported back to the companion website, and then summary statistics would be displayed to healthcare workers on a screen saver. The summary statistics would be updated every time a healthcare worker "synced" the observations. Results showed nurse managers used iScrub for 8982 observations, averaging 264 observations per week. There was an overall upward and statistically significant trend in compliance.
Read the abstract about iScrub.
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iScrub, an iPhone app developed by researchers at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, was used in conjunction with a companion website to report data in real time back to healthcare workers. Over a 34-week time span, healthcare workers were not instructed when or how many times observations on hand hygiene compliance would be conducted.
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Using iScrub, hand hygiene observation data was reported back to the companion website, and then summary statistics would be displayed to healthcare workers on a screen saver. The summary statistics would be updated every time a healthcare worker "synced" the observations. Results showed nurse managers used iScrub for 8982 observations, averaging 264 observations per week. There was an overall upward and statistically significant trend in compliance.
Read the abstract about iScrub.
Related Articles on Hand Hygiene:
Five Months Later, MU Health in Compliance With Federal Patient Safety Standards
UC Regent, Husband Lead the Way to Establishing Prevention Guidelines for Surgical Infections
Connecticut's Windham Hospital Focuses on Professional Education to Reduce Readmissions