BioVigil system can improve hand sanitizer usage

Over 99,000 Americans die each year as a result of Hospital-Acquired Infections (HAIs). According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), hand hygiene is the single most effective way to combat hospital-acquired infections and prevent these unnecessary deaths. As a result, 34 states have implemented standards which require hospitals to improve hand hygiene.

Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center published the results of an IRB-approved clinical trial in The Journal of Hospital Infection. In the study, the BioVigil technology demonstrated a dramatic improvement in hand sanitizer usage with health-care workers involved in the study. The study group improved from a baseline of 73% hand-washing compliance to 93% compliance within the first day of implementation of the BioVigil system. More than half of the nurses involved with the trial exceeded 95% hand-cleaning compliance during the study period.

"Health-care workers are expected to clean their hands before and after every patient contact," explained Brian Sheahan, Chief Executive Officer for BioVigil LLC. "Our system monitors the usage of alcohol-based hand sanitizer, every time a health-care worker enters or exits a patient's hospital room. Even the best hospitals today have very crude, visual or manual methods to monitor hand-washing compliance, and as a result the compliance numbers reported to the state are estimates at best. The BioVigil system can electronically monitor every hand-washing opportunity, and the badge lights up with a green or a red LED so that hospital staff, patients, and patient families can track the hygiene level of each worker. The data is compiled statistically in a secure online real-time database for easy and accurate reporting."

"The BioVigil system quickly created a change in the culture of our staff," explained Dr. Michael Edmond, the principal author of the study and the Division Chair for Infectious Diseases at VCU Medical Center. "Nurses at VCU Medical Center learned very quickly to use the system, and the system enabled a very positive atmosphere, with the green badge LEDs reinforcing good hand-cleaning habits. To our knowledge, the result was the highest level of compliance ever reported."

The complete report, Successful Utilization of Alcohol Sensor Technology to Monitor and Report Hand Hygiene Compliance, can be found in Journal of Hospital Infection at http://www.journalofhospitalinfection.com. Reference: Edmond MB, et al., Successful use of alcohol sensor technology to monitor and report hand hygiene compliance, Journal of Hospital Infection (2010), doi:10.1016/j.jhin.2010.07.006

BioVigil LLC (http://www.biovigil.org), based in Santa Rosa, California, has a number of patents which protect its proprietary approach to hand hygiene detection and reporting. The company has refined its unique approach to hand hygiene compliance over four years of development activity. For more information, contact BioVigil at (707) 508-9170 or at [email protected].