Hand hygiene technical reference manual: to be used by health-care workers, trainers and observers of hand hygiene practices

Overview

The World Health Organization (WHO) has developed evidence-based WHO Guidelines on Hand Hygiene in Health Care to support healthcare facilities to improve hand hygiene and thus reduce HCAI. The Hand Hygiene Technical Reference Manual has been developed to assist health-care workers to implement improvements in their facility as part of a multi-modal strategy and in accordance with the WHO Guidelines on Hand Hygiene in Health Care. This Technical Reference Manual is designed for use in any healthcare facility. It describes detailed hand hygiene information and is aimed at health-care workers, trainers and observers. It focuses on understanding, practising and teaching hand hygiene concepts, with the aim of helping others to understand its importance and application in the prevention of micro-organism cross-transmission. It is particularly important as it provides comprehensive information on the application of WHO’s “My 5 Moments for Hand Hygiene” approach and the practice of hand hygiene observation, as well as providing practical examples and visuals. Thus, it facilitates increased knowledge on both when and how health-care workers should perform, as well as observe, hand hygiene. It can be used to facilitate formal and informal training and education sessions and helps to support the process of evaluation and feedback in relation to hand hygiene observations. The ultimate goal is to support the reduction in acquisition of HCAI by improving hand hygiene practices and thus prevent the wasting of resources, and, save lives.