Suspicion of viral gastroenteritis does improve compliance with hand hygiene.

Purpose: Viral gastroenteritis is common on pediatric wards, increasing the need for adherence with hand hygiene recommendations in order to prevent cross-transmission. Therefore, we investigated hand hygiene reflecting complete work-day activities on pediatric wards and focused on the influence of viral gastroenteritis. There are, so far, no studies representing complete working days on pediatric wards or addressing the influence of viral gastroenteritis.

Hand hygiene in pediatric and neonatal intensive care unit patients: daily opportunities and indication- and profession-specific analyses of compliance.

Background: Hand hygiene is considered to be the single most effective tool to prevent health care-associated infections. Daily hand hygiene opportunities and compliance for pediatric/neonatal intensive care units (ICU) are currently unknown.

Methods: This was a prospective observational study in pediatric and neonatal ICU patients with analyses of hand hygiene behavior in relation to profession, indication, and shift and correlation with disinfectant usage.