By Marilyn King
FREETOWN, May 19 (232news.com) – Sister Tigidankay Aminata Koroma a representative of midwives has said that 61% of health workers such as nurses and midwives are not washing their hands even after touching patients. She said it should be a normal practice for all citizens to be washing their hands.
Sister Koroma made this statement on Thursday May 5th 2022 at the Emergency Operator Center (EOC) at Wilkinson Road in Freetown while Commemorating World Hygiene Day on the theme “A Health care quality and Safety Climate or Culture that value hand hygiene and IPC.”
According to her, the hand washing was introduced during the Ebola outbreak also they bringing IPC hand washing is important. Dr. Alieu Wurie Deputy Medical Officer who delivered the keynote address on behalf of the Minister of Health and Sanitation Dr. Austin Demby stated that IPC is gradually improving on hand washing hygiene the ministry together with their partners are commemorating this day the Slogan is Unite For Safety Clean your hands so that no one should be harm the health workers while administer treatment to patients they should wash their hands together with the patients relative.
Dr. Wurie further stated that global hand hygiene was introduce in 2008 and it come into existence in 2015 as a ministry they have provide Veronica Buckets in all the health centers in the country and hand sanitizers also for you to have pipe borne water not washing your hands there is no need to be reminding people to wash their hands all should be part of our health care system. He also calls on leaders to practice hand washing and encourage communities to use hand washing because the safety of patients lies on the health workers hand.
Dr. Steven Shongwe WHO Country Representative in S/Leone in his opening remarks said his organizations is helping the ministry for the use of Alcohol base hand sanitizer also to strengthen the IPC unit at the ministry, hand washing it prevent you from bacterial also for health workers for not transmit disease to patients and patients not transmit disease to nurses. Christiana Conteh head of IPC said as a ministry they signed hygiene clinical Programme in 2915 during the Ebola outbreak there aims is to maintain global promotion campaign objectives a health care quality and safety climate or culture that values hand hygiene and infection prevention and control.
Madam Conteh said it is a standardized approach for worldwide implementation to facilitate change also the ministry has train health workers on hand hygiene even though they have made progress but they still have challenges in hand washing there is no designated budget for IPC unit on the hand washing they find it difficult to wash our hand due to the behavioral change so she is appealing to health workers to practice hand washing although it is not easy but they must do it. Other speakers are Dr. Gideon Idoko Public Health Specialist ICAP, Dr. Daphne Moffett CDC Country Director and Hassan Benya Analysis Data at Child Fund the Programme was chaired by Dr. Mohamed Vandy who said the hospital he was heading at Kenema said during the Ebola outbreak 26.2 % people including health workers died.
