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Current infection rates suggest that the level of performance required to avoid HCAI is not maintained consistently. There are a variety of reasons cited for this, including staff shortages, bed shortages, and skill mix. While these issues may make performing our role more challenging, the aspects of care that cause infection are at the heart of our most fundamental elements of clinical practice, and we must strive to perform these activities correctly every time.
To support the delivery of evidence-based practice, staff need to be clear about the elements that are required to perform safe care and have a method of being able to measure performance. Clinicians require the necessary training, skills and competence to undertake these activities and, importantly, the desire to constantly ‘self audit’, reflect on practice and ask for advice if uncertain.
The tools within the Saving Lives programme provide the framework to support all healthcare staff in delivering high-quality care. It has reliability and safety at its heart. They are designed specifically to ensure that services are delivered with minimum variation and designed to make it easy for everyone to do the right thing for patients in every procedure.
This website will help you to understand what your role is and reinforce the need to ensure that you play your part in reducing infections and giving patients the care that they rightfully deserve in a safe and clean environment.
"Everyone's business" has become a mantra associated with reducing MRSA and cleaning up our hospitals, and rightly so. The HCAI and Cleanliness Division provides the tools for Trusts and individuals to identify exactly what to do and a method to demonstrate progress. This site will give you an understanding of how you can work with your team to help reduce the number of infections among your patients.
The policies and messages within these documents are clear for all to see. Infection control and cleanliness are everyone’s business. Everyone can contribute to infection control and therefore we all have a duty to fulfil our role.
