Many dentists and practice managers who think that rigorous infection control procedures are only required to comply with HTM01-05 and CQC regulations are missing an important public relations message that can help them promote the positive aspects of dentistry.
With reports that Norovirus is continuing to spread rampantly through the country, the public is avidly seeking reassurance on the subject of infection control. So, although an unpleasant event for those who contract the virus, its proliferation gives us an ideal opportunity to re-visit the important area of hand hygiene.
Figures released by the Health Protection Agency for the week up to January 6, 2013 showed that so far this winter, 63 per cent more people have been affected by Norovirus than at the same stage of winter 2011/12, with predictions that this number will continue to rise following the Christmas and New Year break.
As organisations operating within the healthcare environment, and ones where people gather together in a relatively confined space for a period of time, it is incumbent on dental practices to be as rigorous as possible in limiting the potential for contracting the virus.
Norovirus can be transmitted by contact with contaminated surfaces or objects, by contact with an infected person, or by the consumption of contaminated food or water. So maintaining good hand hygiene and maintaining clean and disinfected surfaces is important to help prevent it spreading.
In the face of the virulence of Norovirus, it is more important than ever that each individual is vigilant about their own personal hand hygiene. Hands should be washed frequently, preferably using a bactericidal hand cleanser, and following washing, hands must be thoroughly dried, as the transmission of microorganisms is more likely when hands are wet or damp.
According to the guidelines, hand washing should take place regularly, and most definitely on each of the following occasions:
- before and after each treatment session,
- before and after the removal of PPE,
- following the washing of dental instruments,
- before contact with instruments that have been steam-sterilised (whether or not these instruments are wrapped),
- after cleaning or maintaining decontamination devices used on dental instruments,
- at the completion of decontamination work.
A further measure that I think would be a positive step forward for practices would be to place a touchless dispenser in the practice reception or waiting room, from which could be dispensed alcohol gel that patients could use on entering the practice. Although not a requirement of HTM01-05, I am of the opinion that this approach would have two immediate effects:
- It would communicate to patients in a very tangible way, the importance placed on infection control by the practice.
- It would promote good practice around handcare and reduce contamination that in the main is spread by hand-to-hand and hand-to-surface contact.
Touchless dispensers are now commonplace on hospital wards and introducing similar measures in a dental practice is a simple yet effective way of reassuring patients that they are entering a clean surgical environment.
Touchless dispensers using disposable cartridges is the system referenced in HTM01-05 and should be the preferred method of dispensing hand wash, gel and hand cream on two counts. Firstly, the design ensures that liquid is dispensed without the need for human contact, meaning they can remain largely free from contamination, and secondly, the dispenser delivers a single measurable dose. This guarantees less waste and ensures hand hygiene processes can be adhered to in a cost-effective manner.
With press coverage last year reporting that one in nine dentists inspected by the CQC were found to be in breach of infection control guidelines, there is a growing need to not only be vigilant, but also be seen to be so. Guidelines are in place for a reason and the need to comply is non-negotiable, but practices can use their compliance as a positive force for good that goes beyond the regulatory bodies. By communicating effectively with patients on infection control matters, practices can demonstrate their efforts to deal with a common concern in a way that strongly resonates with patients.