Safe-hands Alec teams up with Sodexo for hygiene campaign
9/10/2008
Sodexo Healthcare teamed up with former England cricket captain Alec Stewart, to launch the new phase of its hand hygiene campaign, ASK, at Queen's Hospital in Romford.
Alec joined Sodexo Healthcare staff and members of the Trust's infection control team, to demonstrate the seven steps to effective hand hygiene to Queen's Hospital staff, patients and members of the public.
Alec and the team invited people to take a hand cleanliness test with a hand-scan device, before providing them with a seven steps to hand hygiene information card and a takeaway sample of antibacterial hand gel. Together, Sodexo and the Trust aimed to reiterate why good hand hygiene is still a critical factor in reducing the risk of hospital associated infection.
Since introducing ASK in 2004 to educate healthcare staff in effective hand hygiene practices, Sodexo has regularly updated the campaign's training procedures and supporting materials in accordance with the latest NHS guidelines on infection and contamination control. This year, the ASK campaign will widen its focus to include the education of visitors to the healthcare environment.
Recognising that supporting staff in the provision of a clean and safe hospital environment depends not only on dedicated training procedures, but also on clear communication with the public, Sodexo will be taking the ASK demonstration stand to all of its healthcare sites to raise awareness of the campaign.
In addition to posters with pictorial depictions of good hand hygiene practices, and staff badges urging people to ask them when they last washed their hands, the Sodexo Healthcare employees at Queen's Hospital were the first in the company to be issued with a comprehensive package of new visual training aids, take-away anti-bacterial gels and hand creams for visitors, and hand-scanning devices.
Sodexo staff at Queen's Hospital were also be the first to receive the company's new infection control passports, which will be launched in conjunction with ASK. Designed to reinforce training procedures, the passports test employees' knowledge and understanding of infection and contamination control.
Sodexo Healthcare's ASK campaign and its infection and control passports are part of Cleaning Matters™, a wider company programme of cleaning initiatives accompanied by rigorous staff training procedures tailored to individual roles. From frontline domestic employees to managers and supervisors, everyone must follow specific actions, competency checklists and learning points contained within a training manual, a new version of which will be launched by Sodexo Healthcare later this month.
David Platt, Sodexo operations director, said: “Effective hand hygiene is an important tool for combating hospital associated infection. We are delighted that Alec is helping Sodexo communicate this and grateful to Queen's Hospital for giving us the forum to do it.”
Alec added: “I hear and read so much about the work done to combat hospital associated infection. However, it wasn't until recently that I realised just much hand hygiene links into that effort. Sodexo's campaign is a great way to make sure that all of us follow clear hand hygiene instructions. I will definitely be putting into practice what I have learned every time I visit a hospital in the future.”
