PCMH clinical staff engaged in IPC training |
May 4th not
only started a weeklong campaign for hand hygiene, it also saw the brilliant
start of Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) training at Princess Christian Maternity Hospital. PCMH
is one of the 3 hospitals Welbodi Partnership supports in a national IPC
program that was created by the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, CDC and
partners, including Welbodi. The IPC program is aimed at improving hospital
standards and working alongside a national IPC Focal Nurse in each facility. There
will be a big focus on training of all cadres of hospital staff in the first
phase of the project, followed by a huge push on the implementation of
infection control measures such as hand washing, waste segregation and
appropriate sharps (needles/razors etc) management in the clinical areas. This
is to ensure patient and health worker safety during the current Ebola epidemic
but also for the future since there are many infectious diseases that pose a
risk to our patients and staff.
The first
training at PCMH was a three day long event aimed at getting our senior nurses
fully prepared and trained as ‘Link’ Nurses throughout the hospital. Subjects taught
by Margaret, PCMH IPC Focal Person, and Katie, Welbodi Partnership IPC Nurse
Mentor, included demonstrations on hand hygiene, how to don and doff PPE and
waste segregation. We even managed a race on who could construct a sharps box
the fastest. This was a great
opportunity to remind staff of the importance of IPC, to encourage them to take
an active role in IPC in their area of responsibility and to empower them to
pass on their knowledge and skills to their colleagues as well as reinforce IPC
and make sure that IPC measures are put in place in their clinical areas.
This three-day
training of 16 staff at PCMH was a great way to kick off the training for over
400 hospital staff that will need to be trained over the next two months.
Photos by: Katie Hadlock
Text by: Katie Hadlock & Sandra Lako
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