Arrowe Park Hospital – soap and water focus during norovirus outbreak

Infection prevention measure successfully implemented by Wirral health chiefs

An outbreak of norovirus brought Jill Galvani and her Infection Prevention and Control team to the fore at Arrowe Park Hospital according to a report in the Wirral Globe.

The hospital was effectively a “no-go” for visitors for nearly two weeks wrote Emma Rigby. Jill Galvani, the trust’s lead for infection prevention and control, is reported as spearheading a new campaign reminding visitors and patients to “Get into the habit when it comes to good hand hygiene.”

“Keeping our hospital clean, safe and free of germs really is very simple” said Ms Galvani. “The ‘Get into the habit’ campaign acts as a gentle reminder that every time a person goes into or leaves any ward, they need to clean their hands with the alcohol gel we provide.”

Soap and water essential for visibly soiled hands

“If the person has visibly soiled hands then this needs to be soap and hot water first.”

A key element of the article – advice on good hand hygiene – includes two significant points, namely:-

• “The virus will still be in the local community so make sure you wash your hands frequently with soap and hot water as many alcohol gels on the market do not protect you from this highly contagious germ.
• “The alcohol gel used at Arrowe Park Hospital and Clatterbridge Hospital does protect you from germs like Norovirus as it contains an anti‐viral agent inside it (as long as your skin shows no signs of being visibly soiled in which case you must use soap and hot water first).”

High quality hand washing with soap and water – perfect for patients and visitors!

Portable hot water hand washing for healthcare situations – the TEAL Stop n’Wash (shown above) is entirely self contained and needs no mains water service or drainage connections.

The synchronised display takes you through the automatic TEAL Stop n’Wash programme and 7 rubbing actions as laid down on the National Health Service Guidelines:- “Hand-washing technique with soap and water”.

Hot water hand wash hire for UK medical situations

Introducing the TEAL Task Force

TEAL Task Force staff provide a rapid deployment and installation service for the class-leading Teal Stop n’Wash portable hand washing station to medical facilities. Setup and training is provided for on-site staff as part of the service.