title: [Social marketing: applying commercial strategies to the prevention of nosocomial infections].
abstract: Although a large proportion of healthcare-associated infections are avoidable, healthcare workers do not always practice evidence-based preventive strategies. Marketing technologies might help to improve patient safety. This article presents the basic principles of marketing and its potential use to promote good infection control practices. The marketing mix (Product, Price, Place, and Promotion) should be taken into account to induce behaviour change. By placing the emphasis on the perceived "profits" for healthcare workers the approach might lose its moral aspect and gain in effectiveness. VigiGerme, a non-commercial registered trademark, applies social marketing techniques to infection control and prevention.
authors.affiliation: Service prévention et contrôle de l'infection, HUG, Genève 14. hugo.sax@hcuge.ch
authors.forename: Hugo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sax
authors.forename: Yves
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Longtin
authors.forename: Raymonde
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Alvarez-Ceyssat
authors.forename: Chantal
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bonfillon
authors.forename: Sabrina
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cavallero
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dayer
authors.forename: Claude
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ginet
authors.forename: Pascale
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Herrault
mesh_terms: D003428:Cross Infection / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D017053:Infection Control; D040541:Marketing