Health Care Workers Should Strictly Adhere To Hand Hygiene

KUCHING, Dec 15 (Bernama) -- Health care workers should strictly adhere to hand hygiene to reduce infections and the spread of anti-microbial resistance, Sarawak State Health Director Dr Yao Sik King said Friday.
She said health care associated infection was a major global issue concerning patient safety as it affected millions of people and complicated a significant proportion of patient-care deliveries.
Infections also contributed to patient deaths and disability besides promoting resistance to antibiotics and generated additional expenditure to those already incurred by patients' underlying disease, she added.
"Hand hygiene remains the primary measure to reduce infection but health care workers' adherence is extremely low. They should not be the culprits. They should promote the highest standards of practice and behaviour to reduce the risks of health care associated infection," she said.
Dr Yao said this when launching the state-level Hand Hygiene campaign to reduce healthcare associated infections and to promote safety for patients, healthcare providers and community at the Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) here.
The launching, initiated by Infection Control teams of SGH, was in response to the World Health Organisation Global Patient Safety Challenge 2005-2006 with the theme: Clean Care is Safer Care.
"Healthcare campaign launch should not be a minute campaign. There should be an intensifying campaign to promote hand hygiene in all levels. Keeping hand hygiene is part and parcel of daily life," Dr Yao said.