Your 5 moments for hand hygiene care in a maternity unit

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/igo/ WHEN? • Clean your hands before touching the woman or the newborn WHY? • To protect the woman and newborn against harmful germs carried on your hands EXAMPLES • Before taking vital signs • Before listening to the fetal heart rate WHEN? • Clean your hands immediately before performing a clean/aseptic procedure WHY? • To protect the woman and newborn against harmful germs (including their own) from entering their bodies EXAMPLES • Before vaginal examination • Before cord cutting and clamping • Before taking blood WHEN? • Clean your hands immediately after an exposure risk to body fluids WHY? • To protect yourself and the health care environment from harmful patient germs EXAMPLES • After vaginal examination • After delivering the placenta • After handling an invasive medical device WHEN? • Clean your hands after touching the woman or the newborn WHY? • To protect yourself and the health care environment from harmful patient germs EXAMPLES • After touching skin • After performing bathing WHEN? • Clean your hands after touching any object or furniture in the woman or newborn’s immediate surroundings, when leaving the room – even if the woman or newborn have not been touched WHY? • To protect yourself and the health care environment from harmful patient germs EXAMPLES • After touching the woman or newborn’s bed space • After touching woman’s chart at the bedside YOUR 5 MOMENTS FOR HAND HYGIENE CARE IN A MATERNITY UNIT For further information please see the document: “Hand Hygiene in Outpatient and Home-based Care and Long-term Care Facilities”, World Health Organization 2012 https://www.who.int/infection-prevention/publications/hh_evidence/en/ WHO acknowledges Catherine Dunlop (University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom [UK]), Claire Kilpatrick (WHO consultant, Glasgow, UK), and David Lissauer (University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK) for technical input in developing this material. WHO/UHL/HIS/2020.5 © WHO 2020. Some rights served. This work is available und r the CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO licence. Patient zone – The need for hand hygiene is closely connected with health care workers’ activities within the area surrounding each patient, called the patient zone, identified by the dotted area. In maternal care, it includes the woman and all inanimate surfaces that are temporarily, but exclusively dedicated to her, including items touched by or in direct physical contact with her. During and after childbirth, it includes both the woman and the newborn and their immediate surroundings. Hand hygiene opportunities – defined as moments when a hand hygiene action is needed during health care activities, to interrupt germ transmission by hands. There may be multiple hand hygiene opportunities within the sequence of maternal and neonatal care (e.g. during labour and childbirth); it is extremely important to meet the requirements for hand hygiene despite the high frequency of opportunities, due to high maternal, neonatal and health care worker’s infection risk. Glove use and the need for hand hygiene – When an opportunity for hand hygiene occurs while wearing gloves, these should be removed to perform hand hygiene. Gloves should always be changed between patients. BEFORE TOUCHING THE WOMAN/ NEWBORN1 AFTER TOUCHING THE WOMAN/NEWBORN’S SURROUNDINGS5 BEF ORE CLEAN/ASEPTIC PROCEDURE 2 AFTER BODY FL UI D EXPOSUR E 3 AFTER TOUCHING THE WOMAN/ NEWBORN4