Marketing hand hygiene in hospitals--a case study

Area of Science:

• Infection Control
• Societal Marketing
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Healthcare worker hand hygiene is critical for preventing hospital-acquired infections but is often suboptimal.
• Existing infection control efforts have had limited success in consistently improving hand hygiene compliance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of societal marketing principles in improving healthcare worker hand hygiene.
• To assess the impact of enhanced hand hygiene on hospital-acquired infection rates.

Main Methods:

• A societal marketing strategy was developed, including pre-marketing analysis, and focus on product, price, promotion, and placement.
• An alcohol-based hand rub (Spirigel) was placed at patient bedsides.
• Data on hand hygiene compliance, MRSA, and Clostridium difficile associated diarrhoea (CDAD) incidence were collected and analyzed.

Main Results:

• The introduction of Spirigel at the bedside was well-received and led to over 440,000 uses in twelve months at a cost of approximately £5000.
• A reduction in the proportion of hospital-acquired MRSA was observed, decreasing from nearly 50% to 39%.
• The incidence of CDAD decreased by 17.4% (from 11.5 to 9.5 cases/1000 admissions), though this was not statistically significant.

Conclusions:

• Societal marketing principles can be effectively applied to promote and sustain improved hand hygiene practices in healthcare settings.
• Enhanced hand hygiene compliance is associated with a reduction in key hospital-acquired infections.
• This approach offers a viable strategy for improving patient safety and reducing healthcare-associated infection burdens.