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Beyond the Hawthorne Effect: Reduction of Clostridium difficile Environmental Contamination through Active Intervention to Improve Cleaning Practices

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

Dubert M. Guerrero ,
Philip C. Carling ,
Lucy A. Jury ,
Suresh Ponnada ,
Michelle M. Nerandzic  and
Curtis J. Donskey
Dubert M. Guerrero*
Affiliation:
University Hospitals of Cleveland Case Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio; and Sanford Health, Fargo, North Dakota
Philip C. Carling
Affiliation:
Carney Hospital, Dorchester, Massachusetts
Lucy A. Jury
Affiliation:
Louis Stokes Cleveland Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio
Suresh Ponnada
Affiliation:
Louis Stokes Cleveland Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio
Michelle M. Nerandzic
Affiliation:
Louis Stokes Cleveland Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio
Curtis J. Donskey
Affiliation:
Louis Stokes Cleveland Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
*
Sanford Health, 801 Broadway N, Fargo, ND 58122 ([email protected])
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Abstract

Education and passive observation resulted in a significant improvement in housekeeper disinfection of nontoxigenic Clostridium difficile spores artificially inoculated onto surfaces in C. difficile infection rooms. A further significant reduction occurred with direct supervision and real-time feedback, suggesting that optimal disinfection is achieved by working closely with housekeepers.

Type
Concise Communication
Information
Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology , Volume 34 , Issue 5: Special Topic Issue: The Role of the Environment in Infection Prevention , May 2013 , pp. 524 - 526
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America 2013

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References

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