Hand Hygiene

The single most common way of transferring health care-associated infections (HAIs) in health care settings is on the hands of health care providers. Health care providers move from patient to patient and room to room while providing care and working in the patient environment. This movement provides many opportunities for the transmission of organisms on hands that can cause infections. Proper hand hygiene will protect patients and providers and will reduce the spread of infections and the associated treatment costs, reduce hospital lengths of stay and readmissions, reduce wait times, and prevent deaths.

Ontario hospitals now provide public reports of hand hygiene compliance rates. Hospitals will post on their web sites, on an annual basis, by hospital site, the compliance rate for :

1. hand hygiene before initial contact with the patient/patient’s environment for all health care providers
2. hand hygiene after contact with the patient/patient’s environment for all health care providers

Hospitals will also report their data to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. The ministry will post this information on its public website.

Hospitals will also report their data to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care.

Taken from the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care Website.

• Clean Hands Protect Lives Pamphlet  [PDF]