1
Running Head: LITERATURE REVIEW: HAND
HYGIENE
Literature Review: Hand Hygiene and its Relevance to Hospital Acquired Infections
Name
Chamberlain University
NR631: Nurse Executive Concluding Graduate Experience
I
Date
, 2
Running Head: LITERATURE REVIEW: HAND
HYGIENE
Literature Review: Hand Hygiene and its Relevance to Hospital Acquired Infections
In the 1840’s a gentleman by the name of Ignaz Semmelweis discovered a
significant
decrease in mortality by simple improvements in hand hygiene practices (The Joint Commission
(TJC), 2020). The simple most effective way to reduce the spread of infection is by instill the
techniques of appropriate hand hygiene, in which the spread of resistant organisms can be
prevented (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2019). Keeping hands clean is a low-
cost simple way of increasing patient safety, which can be dramatically enhanced just by
compliance alone (World Health Organization (WHO), 2020). High incidence of hospital
acquired infection has been closely related to a decreased hand hygiene compliance rate and
therefore have created hand hygiene adherence programs (McCalla, Reilly, Thomas,
McSpedon-Rai, McMahon, & Palumbo, 2018).
Hospital acquired infections, or HAI’s, are infections acquired during the stay in a
healthcare facility which are not present or incubating at the time of admission (Monegro,
Muppidi, & Regunath, 2020). The risk for getting a hospital acquired infection depends on an
individual’s immune system and the category of risk they fall under, such as
immunosuppression, older age, underlying medical conditions, the presence of central lines or
indwelling catheters, just to name a few (Monegro, Muppidi, & Regunath, 2020). Hospital
acquired infections are attributed to high mortality and morbidity within the healthcare
organizations throughout the United States and are associated with a substantial cost each year
that is tied the healthcare facility itself (Healthy People, 2020). It has been spoken that there
needs to be an implementation of educational resources when it comes to hand hygiene and its
importance as it has been observed that healthcare workers seem to care most about appropriate
measures of hand hygiene only when it seems to be a direct cause to their wellbeing
(Shobowale, Adgunle,
Running Head: LITERATURE REVIEW: HAND
HYGIENE
Literature Review: Hand Hygiene and its Relevance to Hospital Acquired Infections
Name
Chamberlain University
NR631: Nurse Executive Concluding Graduate Experience
I
Date
, 2
Running Head: LITERATURE REVIEW: HAND
HYGIENE
Literature Review: Hand Hygiene and its Relevance to Hospital Acquired Infections
In the 1840’s a gentleman by the name of Ignaz Semmelweis discovered a
significant
decrease in mortality by simple improvements in hand hygiene practices (The Joint Commission
(TJC), 2020). The simple most effective way to reduce the spread of infection is by instill the
techniques of appropriate hand hygiene, in which the spread of resistant organisms can be
prevented (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2019). Keeping hands clean is a low-
cost simple way of increasing patient safety, which can be dramatically enhanced just by
compliance alone (World Health Organization (WHO), 2020). High incidence of hospital
acquired infection has been closely related to a decreased hand hygiene compliance rate and
therefore have created hand hygiene adherence programs (McCalla, Reilly, Thomas,
McSpedon-Rai, McMahon, & Palumbo, 2018).
Hospital acquired infections, or HAI’s, are infections acquired during the stay in a
healthcare facility which are not present or incubating at the time of admission (Monegro,
Muppidi, & Regunath, 2020). The risk for getting a hospital acquired infection depends on an
individual’s immune system and the category of risk they fall under, such as
immunosuppression, older age, underlying medical conditions, the presence of central lines or
indwelling catheters, just to name a few (Monegro, Muppidi, & Regunath, 2020). Hospital
acquired infections are attributed to high mortality and morbidity within the healthcare
organizations throughout the United States and are associated with a substantial cost each year
that is tied the healthcare facility itself (Healthy People, 2020). It has been spoken that there
needs to be an implementation of educational resources when it comes to hand hygiene and its
importance as it has been observed that healthcare workers seem to care most about appropriate
measures of hand hygiene only when it seems to be a direct cause to their wellbeing
(Shobowale, Adgunle,
