HandInScan steps into the footprints of Ignaz Semmelweis, fighting healthcare-associated infections with evidence-based practices. The Semmelweis Scanner offers a total quality solution for hand hygiene skill training, monitoring and performance assessment. The system provides immediate feedback on the actual hand hygiene technique, resulting in rapid improvement of the healthcare workers’ compliance with the current protocols. Staff inclusion and patient empowerment are supported via real-time, customizable reporting system, also offering accurate and timely quality reports to the management.
Our evidence shows:
1. 27% of staff fails objective assessment after traditional training, based on a large, single-site Singapore trial including 5200 health care workers. Female nurses with significant experience perform the best. Nurses outperform medical doctors.
Source: L. Szilagyi, et al. “A Large-Scale Assessment of Hand Hygiene Quality and the Effectiveness of the “WHO 6-steps”,” BMC Infectious Diseases, vol. 13, issue 249, 2013.
2. The rate of adequate hand rubbing increased from 58% to 87% (P < 0.001) only within 5 measurements when immediate objective visual feedback was given to participants showing missed areas on their hands. This pilot study included 136 health care workers across 3 hospital sites in Hungary.
Source: A. Lehotsky, et al. “The quantitative impact of direct, personal feedback on hand hygiene technique,” J. of Hospital Infection (IF: 2.78) vol. 91, issue 1, pp. 81–84, 2015.
3. The fluorescent method is a true and reliable indicator of correctly disinfected and pathogen-free areas on the hand surface; this in vitro method indicates correctly disinfected areas with 95.05% sensitivity and 98.01% specificity.
Source: A. Lehotsky, et al. “Towards Objective Hand Hygiene Technique Assessment: Validation of the Ultraviolet-Dye-Based Hand-Rubbing Quality Assessment Procedure,” The Journal of hospital infection vol. 97, issue 1, pp. 26-29, 2017.
4. A pilot study at a major dialysis service provider with 500+ participants across 18 dialysis centres showed significant improvement in hand hygiene quality in both 2017 and 2018, however, it is obvious that more frequent usage of the Semmelweis Scanner is required than 2 weeks/year/site to sustain high hand hygiene quality standards.
