Researching effective approaches to cleaning in hospitals

"The study uses the integrated Promoting Action on Research Implementation in Health Services (iPARIHS) framework to support the tailored implementation of the environmental cleaning bundle in each hospital."

Researching effective approaches to cleaning in hospitals: protocol of the REACH study, a multi-site stepped-wedge randomised trial
L Hall, et al.
Implementation Science, 2016, 11:44

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Improving outcomes for patients with sepsis

"Earlier this year, NHS England convened a group of experts from across the health and care landscape, the UK Sepsis Trust, Royal Colleges, patients and expert clinicians to advise on those actions needed to drive improvement in the identification and treatment of sepsis. Through their deliberations, the group agreed on the need to:

1. Prevent avoidable cases of sepsis.
2. Increase awareness of sepsis amongst professionals and the public.
3. Improve the identification and treatment of sepsis across the whole patient pathway.
4. Improve consistency of standards and reporting.
5. Underpin all actions with the principles of appropriate antibiotic use and antimicrobial stewardship.

This document is intended for those working across the health and social care landscape – including provider organisations, commissioners, and healthcare professionals. We hope that it will also be helpful to the public in understanding what the health system is doing to address a major cause of death and lasting ill health."

Improving outcomes for patients with sepsis: A cross-system action plan
NHS England
December 2015

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Global Health Security Agenda pilot assessment of the United Kingdom

"International expert team’s assessment of UK’s health protection services against the standards and targets set out under the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA)."

Global Health Security Agenda: pilot assessment of the UK
Department of Health
August 2015

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NICE Quality Standard: Surgical site infection (QS49)

"This quality standard covers the prevention and treatment of surgical site infection for adults, children and young people undergoing surgical incisions through the skin, in all healthcare settings."

NICE Quality Standard: Surgical site infection (QS49)
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence
October 2013

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Barriers and levers to best hand hygiene practice among healthcare practitioners

"This study has produced encouraging findings suggesting the potential for improved hand hygiene and resulting effects on the human and financial costs of healthcare associated infection."

Development of a theory-based instrument to identify barriers and levers to best hand hygiene practice among healthcare practitioners
J Dyson, R Lawton, C Jackson, F Cheater
Implementation Science, 2013, 8:111

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Comparison of strategies to reduce MRSA rates in surgical patients

"In surgical wards with relatively low MRSA prevalence, a combination of enhanced standard and MRSA-specific infection control approaches was required to reduce MRSA rates."

Comparison of strategies to reduce meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus rates in surgical patients: a controlled multicentre intervention trial
AS Lee, et al.
BMJ Open, 2013, 3:e003126

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Time to act: severe sepsis: rapid diagnosis and treatment saves lives

"Better care could lead to savings in 8 Time to act - Severe sepsis: rapid diagnosis and treatment saves lives terms of reduced length of hospital stay and less intensive care and renal dialysis."

Time to act: severe sepsis: rapid diagnosis and treatment saves lives
Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman
September 2013

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Lining up: How do improvement programmes work?

"This is the second report examining aspects of the Health Foundation’s Lining Up project – an investigation into interventions to reduce central line infections."

Lining up: How do improvement programmes work?
The Health Foundation
August 2013

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Improving infection control

"Improved implementation of procedural good practice may occur through many different routes, of which program participation is only one."

Explaining Matching Michigan: an ethnographic study of a patient safety program
M Dixon-Woods, M Leslie, C Tarrant, J Bion
Implementation Science, 2013, 8:70

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Targeted versus universal decolonization to prevent ICU infection

"In routine ICU practice, universal decolonization was more effective than targeted decolonization or screening and isolation in reducing rates of MRSA clinical isolates and bloodstream infection from any pathogen."

Targeted versus universal decolonization to prevent ICU infection
SS Huang, et al.
New England Journal of Medicine, 2013, May 29th

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Integrating human factors with infection prevention and control

"In this thought paper, the authors discuss the application of human factors principles within infection prevention and control activities."

Integrating human factors with infection prevention and control
J Storr, N Wigglesworth, C Kilpatrick
The Health Foundation
May 2013

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Protecting healthcare workers from sharps injuries

"Regulations implementing EU law (the“Sharps Directive”– European Council Directive 2010/32/EU) come into force across the UK on 11 May 2013. All NHS employers and employees need to be aware of and act upon the additional requirements (over and above existing health and safety legislation) resulting from the new regulations."

Protecting healthcare workers from sharps injuries
NHS European Office - NHS Employers
May 2013 - Issue 13

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Two different strategies for promoting hand hygiene in hospital nurses

"In summary, with this study we were able to look inside the ‘black box’ of two hand hygiene improvement strategies, to generate insights into which strategy components are effective."

Explaining the effects of two different strategies for promoting hand hygiene in hospital nurses: a process evaluation alongside a cluster randomised controlled trial
A Huis, G Holleman, T van Acterberg, R Grol, L Schoonhoven, M Hulscher
Implementation Science, 2013, 8:41

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Lining up: how is harm measured?

"Lessons from an ethnographic research study of interventions to reduce central line infections."

Learning report: Lining up: how is harm measured?
The Health Foundation
February 2013

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Prevention and control of infection in care homes

"The steps taken in care homes to protect residents and staff from infection represent an important element in the quality of care, particularly as some infections have the capacity to spread within environments where susceptible people share eating and living accommodation."

Prevention and control of infection in care homes - an information resource
Department of Health, Health Protection Agency
February 2013

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Reducing colorectal surgical site infections

"In partnership with the American College of Surgeons, the Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare led a multi-institutional collaboration of seven leading U.S. hospitals, which was established to reduce colorectal SSIs."

Reducing colorectal surgical site infections
Joint Commission's Center for Transforming Healthcare
December 2012

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Cost comparison of MRSA screening and management

"It was shown that universal MRSA screening strategies are far more cost-intensive than the targeted screening approaches."

Cost comparison of MRSA screening and management: a decision tree analysis
A Tubbicke, C Hubner, NO Hubner, C Wegner, A Kramer, S Flessa
BMC Health Services Research, 2012, 12:438

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A systematic review of hand hygiene improvement strategies

"Addressing only determinants such as knowledge, awareness, action control, and facilitation is not enough to change hand hygiene behaviour."

A systematic review of hand hygiene improvement strategies: a behavioural approach
A Huis, T van Achterberg, M de Bruin, R Grol, L Schoonhoven, M Hulscher
Implementation Science, 2012, 7:92

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Use of hand hygiene interventions improves with psychological theory

"This qualitative study demonstrated the value in using psychological theories commonly used in knowledge translation to explore barriers and facilitators to current hand hygiene (HH) practices and when implementing an intervention to improve HH practice."

Using psychological theory to inform methods to optimize the implementation of a hand hygiene intervention
VM Boscart, GR Fernie, JH Lee, SB Jaglal
Implementation Science, 2012, 7:77

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Nurse staffing, burnout, and health care-associated infection

"Reducing burnout in registered nurses is a promising strategy to help control
infections in acute care facilities."

Nurse staffing, burnout, and health care-associated infection
JP Cimiotti, LH Aiken, DM Sloane, ES Wu
American Journal of Infection Control, 2012, 40:486-490

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