Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 18th April 2024 Issue no. 1110

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Health secretary Jeremy Hunt highlights importance of hand hygiene

Late last month, health secretary Jeremy Hunt visited international skincare and hand hygiene expert, Deb Group, at its Denby headquarters, alongside Conservative minister for Amber Valley, Nigel Mills. The pair toured the research facilities, meeting staff and seeing first-hand the research & development being pioneered by the Derbyshire-based organisation.

Deb has developed an electronic group monitoring system (GMS), which allows hospitals to collect the most accurate and transparent data on hand hygiene compliance. Encouraging positive behavioural change, the GMS supports the elimination of healthcare associated infections, such as MRSA and C.diff.

"I was delighted to welcome the Health Secretary to our headquarters to highlight the vital and innovative work we conduct in the area of patient safety," says the Group's chief executive Bryan Anderson.

"It may sound simple, but thousands of patients are put at risk every year due to poor hand hygiene practices in hospitals where current compliance measurement is wholly ineffective as a result of a reliance on archaic and flawed data collection techniques.

"It was encouraging to see Jeremy Hunt's very clear desire to raise awareness of the importance of hand hygiene in the fight to eliminate hospitals infections."

Patients in the UK have a 6.4% chance of contracting an infection in hospital; healthcare associated infections affect 300,000 patients a year, causing 5,000 deaths and costing the NHS up to £1bn per annum.

T: +44 (0) 1773 855 100
E: [email protected]
W: www.debgroup.com

21st May 2015