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Traffic authorities have learned that the widespread deployment of video cameras helps control speeding. One hospital's infection-control team decided to use the same practice to improve hand-washing rates.
Video cameras were installed at all the sinks and hand-sanitizer dispensers in a 17-bed intensive care unit in a tertiary U.S. hospital, and motion detectors were installed in the doorways of each patient room. Trained off-site personnel monitored the video footage continuously for the adequacy of hand hygiene before and after each patient encounter.
During a 16-week start-up period, only 6% of recorded “hygiene events” were considered acceptable. However, once a feedback system was initiated, featuring two large LED displays mounted in th…