cleanyourhands Campaign

Healthcare-associated infections are of concern to all of us whether we are patients, visitors or healthcare workers: it is in everyone’s interest to ensure that healthcare is as safe as possible. Hand hygiene is a crucial part of our efforts to prevent and control healthcare-associated infections.

Staff in our Trusts have already carried out extensive work in highlighting the importance of hand hygiene and that it is a responsibility which is shared by everyone for reducing the spread of infection. Already this work has brought about clear improvements in hand hygiene, but there is always more that can be done.

As part of our continuing efforts to ensure that hand hygiene has a high profile, both for healthcare staff and the public, the Department and the Health and Social Care family of organisations are adopting the cleanyourhands campaign.

Hands are one of the main ways that infections can be spread, and this is why the Department of Health Social Services and Public Safety has for the first time linked in to the National Patient Safety Agency’s cleanyourhands campaign.  Although this is our first year, the campaign is now entering its third year in NHS hospitals in England and Wales.

The Department is proud to have signed up to the World Health Organisation (WHO) Global Patient Safety Challenge: Clean Care is Safer Care, and introducing this regional hand hygiene approach is an extension of that commitment.

This initiative is to bring to the attention of staff, patients and the public the importance of hand hygiene in the prevention and control of HCAIs.

We know that Trusts are already aware of and using the WHO guidelines on hand hygiene in health care: Clean Hands are Safer Hands (www.who.int/patientsafety). The cleanyourhands campaign will reinforce this message.

Examples of campaign materials.