One of the first winners of our new Customer Awards is Jonathan Fox, a nurse at Emory Decatur Hospital. Jonathan had the highest hand hygiene rate of all nurses in all hospitals using the Clean Hands – Safe Hands system across the country during the 3rd quarter of 2018. We recently caught up with Jonathan to find out what drives him.
CHSH: What do you like most about your job?
Jonathan: I suppose what’s most exciting to my job is feeling competent to perform it. It’s rewarding to perform the interventions that save lives, so when you have that patient who FINALLY gets extubated, or finishes the hypothermia protocol, or has their DKA/HHS resolve, or weans off their pressors, or starts getting out of bed, you feel a little bit like a rock star (especially if you’ve been involved in their care for a considerable time).
CHSH: How has the CHSH system impacted your interactions with patients?
Jonathan: I think it helps everyone eliminate the forgetfulness we all have, even about things that are supposed to be “second nature” to us. When I’m talking to family members of my patients when I meet them for the first time, I often mention the alcohol dispenser and let them know that it will remind them if it senses motion at the doorway and the hand sanitizer isn’t utilized. Hand sanitizer use at every doorway is less “second nature” for our patient’s family members, so I think they hear the message more than we do, but I also think most of them appreciate the reminder.
CHSH: Does the CHSH system help make you more aware of your hand hygiene practices?
Jonathan: Definitely. Every time I hear “please sanitize” I think to myself, “darn, I missed one.” But at the end of the day, I’ll sanitize after I’m reminded to, and otherwise I would have not sanitized in that scenario, had I not been reminded.
CHSH: Do you find yourself thinking about hand hygiene during the day or is it ingrained into your routine to the point where you do not think about it?
Jonathan: I find myself searching for a Purell dispenser when I walk through the doorway from my living room to my kitchen at home — so it must be a part of my routine by now. However, sometimes things happen fast where I work — those are the times I’m reminded by the “please sanitize” message. The benefit of CHSH is that you can’t get away with forgetting to sanitize as easily.
If you’d like to learn more about how our electronic hand hygiene reminder system has decreased HAIs by an average of over 60% in our last ten consecutive hospital installations, download our free white paper now. Or contact us so we can discuss your hospital’s specific needs.
