In Touch newsletter: June 2016

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INTOUCH JUNE 2016

Jesse Potts, a clinical assistant in the Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit, performs hand hygiene during a Tough Scrubber session. (Photo by Katie Cooper, Medical Media Centre)

Getting tough on hand hygiene has never been so fun By James Wysotski

The difference between a Tough Mudder and a Tough Scrubber isn’t as vast as one might think. The former, a military-style obstacle course, revolves around teamwork while testing mental and physical strength. Participants in the latter – a St. Michael’s Hospital initiative to improve hand hygiene – are also tested, and they, too, have learned that everyone wins by helping colleagues succeed. Tough Scrubber, the brainchild of the Heart and Vascular Program’s Quality Printed on 100 per cent recycled paper

and Safety Leader Group, begins with staff taking a five-question test requiring them to read about patient interactions and identify if hand hygiene is necessary. “The questions are challenging,” said Laura Shapiro, an occupational therapist and co-chair of the group. “They give staff the opportunity to say ‘What’s Moment 1 again? What’s Moment 4?’ It was also a good refresher for Accreditation.” Next, participants go through mock scenarios featuring co-workers as “patients.” Again, the task is to perform hand hygiene at the proper moments

while touching medications, transferring patients, giving out water or handling scanners and patient wristbands. Despite the informal setting, the realistic situations inspire true learning. Proof comes a month later when participants redo the test to see if they retained the knowledge. Early data suggests they do. In January, Infection Prevention and Control’s Moment 1 (before patient contact) compliance rates for Cardiology and the Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit were 40 and 50 per cent, respectively. Following Tough Continued on page 2 JUNE 2016 | IN TOUCH | 1


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