September 24, 2020
St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children is committed to protecting the health and well-being of our patients and their families. Earlier this year, we conducted a successful six-month automated hand hygiene monitoring pilot program with Vitalacy, Inc. The monitoring program, which was piloted in the Nursery unit, resulted in a record low infection rate even during the COVID-19 pandemic. In July, we announced a full-hospital expansion plan of the program.
As the coronavirus/COVID-19 health situation continues to evolve, we are committed to protecting the health and well-being of our patients and families. Together, we are taking steps to minimize the spread of the viruses system-wide and in the community. We are continuing to follow the guidelines from the federal and state regulatory agencies.
Programs such as Vitalacy Automated Hand Hygiene Monitoring Solution gives our St. Mary’s
kids a safer environment to heal and thrive. All of our caregivers wear a smartband with bluetooth. The band is able to monitor when a caregiver activates a soap or sanitizer dispenser. When they are approaching a patient, the smartband gives them a gentle vibration reminder that lets them know it is time to wash their hands. The band is also able to monitor the duration and quality of the caregiver’s hand washing. According to CDC guidelines, washing hands for 20 seconds is one of the most important steps caregivers can take to avoid getting sick and spreading germs to others. With this system, St. Mary’s caregivers increased their handwashing time by 10 seconds in just weeks with real-time
coaching reminders on the smartbands.
How does the smartband work?
• A St. Mary’s caregiver enters a patient’s room wearing a Vitalacy Smartband
• The location beacon in the ceiling of the patient’s room records the caregiver entering the patient’s room
• If they do not activate the dispenser sensor to perform a hand wash, the Vitalacy Smartband will send a vibration and visual reminder to the caregiver to wash their hands
• When they wash their hands for the period of time, they are marked as being compliant
• The secured data from the smartband is then sent over WiFi to a dashboard report
We started the program at St. Mary’s in October of last year. We are now focusing on ways to engage our staff and continue to improve our hand hygiene performance. We had a contest with our Nursery unit to see who our top 10 hygiene champions for the month of August were:
Nooria Danish, RN
Huiwen Wang, RN
Elizabeth Grullon, RN
Una Lynch, CCT
Tania Rudaya, RN
Joan Nash, CCT
Pascale Trouillot, CCT
Kerryann Howell, RNT
Paula Leocadio, RN
Susan Ramrattan, CNA
With the success of the Vitalacy, Inc. program in our nursery unit, we have implemented the program with the toddler staff and will continue until we have all units at St. Mary’s Hospital for Children by the end of the year.
With the Vitalacy, Inc. program, St. Mary’s is able to promote a continuous care experience that helps us reach quality goals and ensure a safe center of care for our patients and their families.
Clean hands save lives!
