Implementation of a multimodal infection control strategy in the nursing home

Abstract

The main cause of morbidity and mortality among residents of nursing homes (NHs) is healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). We conducted infection control intervention by applying the WHO multimodal strategy for one year from January to December 2018 in the one NH in South Korea. Healthcare workers (HCWs) in NH were observed by infection control nurse from February to December 2018. Hand hygiene (HH) compliance according WHO 5 moments and type of HH, glove use were measured as main outcomes. During the intervention period, a total of 1,461 cases were observed. HH compliance among HCWs increased from 12.6% to 55.2% after the intervention. According to WHO 5 moments, HH before touching a patient and after touching a patient saw significant improvements. Further, glove misuse decreased significantly from 45.9% to 25.4%. The multifaceted infection control program in the NH group significantly improved the HH compliance of HCWs. (c) 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)