title: Keep it clean: a visual approach to reinforce hand hygiene compliance in the emergency department.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Although hand hygiene strategies significantly reduce health care-associated infections, multiple studies have documented that hand hygiene is the most overlooked and poorly performed infection control intervention.
  
  
  METHODS
  Emergency nurses and technicians (n = 95) in a 41-bed emergency department in eastern Virginia completed pretests and posttests, an education module, and two experiential learning activities reinforcing hand hygiene and infection control protocols.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Posttest scores were significantly higher than pretest scores (t (108) = -6.928, P = .048). Hand hygiene compliance rates improved at the conclusion of the project and 3 months after the study (F (2, 15) = 9.89, P = .002).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Interfaces with staff as they completed the interactive exercise, as well as anecdotal notes collected during the study, identified key times when compliance suffered and offered opportunities to further improve hand hygiene and, ultimately, patient safety.
authors.affiliation: Norfolk and Virginia Beach, VA. Electronic address: lwiles@odu.edu.
authors.forename: Lynn L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Wiles
authors.affiliation: Norfolk and Virginia Beach, VA.
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Roberts
authors.affiliation: Norfolk and Virginia Beach, VA.
authors.forename: Kim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Schmidt
mesh_terms: D003428:Cross Infection / Q000517:prevention & control*; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D063373:Hand Hygiene / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D017053:Infection Control / Q000379:methods*; D014768:Virginia
keywords: Experiential learning; Hand hygiene; Infection control; UV light technology