Research projects
Our company is committed to advancing healthcare quality through evidence-based research and innovation. Through the Impact Network, we collaborate with hospitals and healthcare institutions to conduct research projects that improve patient safety and healthcare worker performance. Below are the research projects we are conducting with our healthcare partners.
Project 1
Project Title:
Descriptive Analysis of Healthcare Worker Hand Hygiene Compliance on Units with Electronic Hand Hygiene Monitoring Systems (EHHMS)
Collaborators:
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Unity Health (St. Michael's Hospital) and Grand River Hospital where the Hygienic Echo Buddy Badge EHHMS is installed.
Background:
Hand hygiene is an effective strategy to prevent healthcare-associated infections and is a key component of infection prevention and control. Electronic hand hygiene monitoring systems eliminate observer bias and collect large volumes of observations by utilizing sensors on dispensers to measure hand hygiene performance when entering or leaving patient rooms.
Objectives:
To describe the prompt implementation process at each of the three facilities based on prompt type (vibratory or audio), timing of implementation relative to EHHMS introduction, and changes in prompt use. To describe and compare hand hygiene performance at the individual healthcare worker level based on discipline, day of the week, shift, prompt use, timing of hand hygiene relative to prompt, compliance with badge wearing, and isolation status of rooms.
Hypothesis:
Healthcare workers' hand hygiene compliance at the extremes, low performers (<20%) and high performers (>70%), will be unaffected by the implementation of audio prompts while improved compliance will be recorded for those with compliance between 20 and 70%.
Outcome:
The study outcome will be the distribution of healthcare worker hand hygiene performance across participating units.
Project 2
Project Title:
Impact of Positive vs. Negative Feedback on Badge and Hand Hygiene Compliance Using an Electronic Hand Hygiene Monitoring System (EHHMS)
Collaborators:
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
Background:
Hand hygiene is an effective strategy to prevent healthcare-associated infections and is a key component of infection prevention and control. Electronic hand hygiene monitoring systems eliminate observer bias and collect large volumes of observations. Healthcare worker hand hygiene has been shown to be impacted by real-time prompts, with performance decreasing when prompts are removed. Similarly, reward programs for hand hygiene have led to performance improvements.
Objectives:
To compare the change in both badge and hand hygiene compliance before and after implementation of positive versus negative individual feedback. To determine if the order of implementation (positive then negative versus negative then positive) influences sustainability of badge and hand hygiene compliance measured at 6-months post implementation.
Hypothesis:
Negative feedback (badge prompts) will result in greater hand hygiene improvement compared to positive feedback (rewards), but lower badge compliance. The combination of both interventions will result in sustained improvement from baseline with no difference based on order of implementation.
Outcome:
The study outcomes will be the unit level change in hand hygiene and badge compliance.
Publications
