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Hand Hygiene Improvement Program
Health care associated infections (HAIs) have a significant impact on both patients and the province’s health system.
For patients, HAIs can negatively impact quality of life (due to isolation or long-term health effects) and are an increasing concern with the appearance of antibiotic resistant organisms such as methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Vancomycin-resistant Enterococci (VRE).
For the health care system,such infections drive up health care costs through increased patient length of stay, longer wait times for admission and increased treatment costs.
Proper hand hygiene – the use of alcohol-based hand rub or soap and water by health care workers to clean their hands – is one of the most effective ways of preventing these infections.
A new Hand Hygiene Improvement Program is being tested by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care to help improve hand hygiene practices by Ontario’s health care workers.
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