Ideas That Work: Make Hand Hygiene Reminders Stand Out

Practical pearls from your colleagues.

When it comes to hand hygiene, simple messaging can work wonders. Infection prevention leader Nicole Nomides, MT(ASCP), MS, CIC, FAPIC, can attest to that fact from her time as an infection prevention manager for Michigan Medicine in Ann Arbor.

As part of a larger hand hygiene project, Ms. Nomides’ OR staff designed and created their own posters that were prominently displayed in all patient care areas.

The posters featured large Stop Signs with the phrases “Clean In” and “Clean Out.” The signage empowered staff to remind their colleagues about proper hand hygiene and instill a Clean In and Clean Out mindset. The posters served as helpful reminders about hand hygiene to anyone moving in patient spaces, including vendors.

Patients and families were encouraged to ask staff about hand hygiene if they didn’t see a staff member stop to Clean In. The posters provided a good segue into discharge instructions about the critical importance of hand hygiene at home to prevent infection transmission any time the patient or their caregiver manipulates the surgical site. OSM