Just Clean Your Hands Presentation | University of British Columbia | Sauder School of Business
More than 8,000 Canadians die yearly as a result of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs).
Antibiotic-resistant organisms cost the Canadian taxpayer more than 50 million dollars annually.
Improper hand hygiene is thought to be one of the main contributors to the spread of disease within
healthcare institutions, which is why the London Health Science Center (LHSC) initiated a pilot
project in 2007 aimed at improving the hand hygiene of persons encountering admitted patients.
The project named “Just Clean Your Hands” consists of 4 moments of care and includes the
recording of personal hygiene factors such as nail polish or jewelry in contact with a person’s hand,
as well as proper handwashing methods. Data was collected using observers recording
conformance to the protocol. Four years after project initiation, data analysis of the program did
not yield expected results. Could current motivational structures as well as improper
communication be the cause? What leadership style is needed to bring compliance rates to 100%?
Sarah Noble, a student assigned to investigate the program data, tried to analyze the potential
reasons behind the cause for low conformance levels. A consulting firm was subsequently hired to
get a better understanding of the matter. Although a significant effort was put into increasing
compliance rates, conformance did not reach the desired levels due to various reasons including
staff workload, skin irritation problems as well as the location of sinks and alcohol dispensers.
Several predominant factors however seemed to be the level of communication as well as the
implementation structure of the project, which can be attributed to a lack of leadership.
It was found that no mechanism for discipline existed, and the current handling of the program did
not seem to yield expected results. It is evident that no two healthcare settings are the same.
Therefore, the same framework cannot be applied to every place. There is a need to use a
multifaceted, multidisciplinary approach to make the hand hygiene program more effective. A
localized program needs to be established with continuous monitoring while refining the processes.
Defining proper success indicators will help set achievable goals.