Multidisciplinary team audit rounds promote hand hygiene in a community hospital in Japan

Abstract

BACKGROUND Since fiscal year 2012, National Healthcare Insurance System has begun additional reimbursement for infection prevention, which requires weekly multidisciplinary team hospital-wide rounds. Auditing teams must consist of physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and lab technologists. We have taken these opportunities to promote healthcare providers’ hand hygiene practices. METHODS During the period from April 2017 to April 2018, on weekly rounds, we audited healthcare providers’ hand hygiene practices and sent the data to every ward on next rounds. To evaluate hand hygiene adherence quantitatively, on four times (April 2017, May 2017, January 2018, and April 2018), we examined whether healthcare workers carried 60-mL alcohol gel reel-stringed bottles with them. In addition, we serially monitored the consumed alcohol amount per one patient-day. As a comprehensive outcome of the program, the percentages of methicillin resistance in the isolated _Staphylococcus aureus_ strains were compared between the first (April to September 2017) and second halves (October 2017 to March 2018). The results were examined by chi-square analysis. RESULTS As results, the percentages of alcohol gel-carrying workers were continuously improved 86.8%, 95.2%, 96.1%, and 98.5% on the respective sessions (P CONCLUSIONS Weekly multidisciplinary team hospital-wide rounds improved hand hygiene practices. From the points of view other than nurses, we could hand necessity of hand hygiene to all-class healthcare workers. We wish for further improvement of hand hygiene by routine rounds.