WORKHOP ON EFFECTIVE HAND WASHING AT THE NURSES AND MIDWIVES TRAINING COLLAGE TAMALE (NMTCT). 16TH TO 17TH OCTOBER, 2018.

This workshop is the phase two under the capacity building for staff and students on Effective Hand washing. The phase one was for only staff, phase two for students and phase three for implementation. The day one of the workshop started at about 9:30am at the NMTCT campus. Two stations were established for the training. Each station had a facilitator and a coordinator from the health promotion committee. It started with a presentation of a video on how microorganisms are transferred from one person to another at the hospital as we render health services to patients.

The facilitators started by identifying common parts of the human body that microorganism and found or natured. Some of the common sites/areas microorganisms are found were identified to include the groin, armpit and most commonly the hands. However, the hands were the common site of transfer of microorganisms since most people practice handshake as a form of greetings. The facilitators also mentioned that the blood pressure cuff and door handle easily transfer microorganisms. Infection Prevention and Control has been established to be very necessary in the prevention nosocomial infection and involves frequent hand washing with adequate water and soap under running water before and after a procedure or by using the alcohol hand rub. The various techniques for hand washing was discussed and a demonstration done by the facilitator.

To use the soap and water for hand washing, you need to ensure that clean water, soap and single use hand materials are available, also make sure there is a receptacle or waste bin. Turn on tap and wet hands taking care not to splash water on clothes, next was to dispense a generous amount of soap then evenly spread soap over palms and dorsum of hands and rub palms in a circular motion, next was to rub palm to dorsum and interlace fingers and cup hands together and then massage You rub the tips of the fingers then you wash the wrist, rinse and dry hands thoroughly. With the alcohol hand rub, you dispense about 5mls of alcohol hand rub into a cupped hand and with this you insert fingers first and rotate before applying palm to palm using a circular rubbing motion, at this point the procedure is continued just like the water and soap washing. The procedure for the alcohol hand rub should last for 20-30 minutes. A returned demonstration was done by participants-students and each student had the opportunity to try their hands.

A total of 347 participants were to take part in the first day training with two facilitators but a total of 195 participants were present for the training and the workshop came to an end at about 2pm. The day two training started at 9am. Facilitators again started with a video presentation which was later discussed by participants. The presentation on how to prevent infections from the wards was discussed, through frequent hand washing. The day two was faced with an interruption as thirty minutes into the workshop, the post NAC/NAP had to leave the workshop because the Dean of students demanded they leave the workshop and to meet her. They left as such and could not join again to complete the workshop. A demonstration by facilitators done and a returned demonstration by participants were also done. A total of 70 participants registered out of the expected 85 for each team and the workshop came to an end at 11am.