Does improved hand hygiene reduce the spread of bacteria in health care settings?
Hand hygiene reduces transmission of pathogens and the incidence of health care-associated infections (HAIs). Studies dating back to 1847 have demonstrated that mortality rates of mothers who were assisted with childbirth by hospital staff who cleaned their hands with an antiseptic agent were substantially lower than those deliveries by hospital staff who used only plain soap and water. This study was conducted by Ignaz Semmelweis (who died in 1865), a Hungarian obstetrician who is considered the father of hand hygiene. Studies from the 1960s to the present have consistently demonstrated the relationship of noncompliance with hand hygiene and the increased incidence of HAIs. Recently there has been widespread news coverage of the spread of MRSA in health care settings. In a CDC publication release (MRSA in Healthcare Settings) on Oct. 3, 2007, it was stated that “the main mode of transmission of MRSA to other patients is through human hands, especially health care workers’ hands. Hands
