Hygiene & infection prevention network

Professor Kjeld Møller Pedersen is a health economist and one of the leading experts in estimating the costs of healthcare-associated infections. He is working at the University of Southern Denmark in the Department of Business and Economics and has published more than 400 papers and authored 17 books. On why it is crucial to prevent healthcare-associated infections:"People  do not realize that we have a surprisingly high number of deaths from healthcare-associated infections. And then we have the human suffering of the survivors too."On why healthcare-associated infections do not get much attention from decision-makers in healthcare?"We lack transparency about the consequences  and  frequency of healthcare-associated infections."On the cost of the healthcare-associated infections "A simple way is to look at the number of beds that are used for patients with healthcare-associated infections. That is a considerable number! That number can be turned a monetary value". "If we want to have the real estimate of healthcare-associated infections, you have to track patients for a considerable period of time, including readmissions and cost for the local communities and the sickness/absence. People will be shocked if we provide the figures on that." Professor Kjeld Møller Pedersen recommends reading the studies by the Australian Professor and Health Economist Nicholas Graves.

On the episode is Kelly Schmidtke.Dr. Kelly Schmidtke is a psychologist and a PhD in experimental psychology. She is currently an assistant professor at Warwick Medical School in England. She is the author of several book chapters and research papers. On decision making"Our brain doesn't make decisions, we make decisions, as people. And we have to own our decisions, not cast them off to our brain did all the hard work for us [...] You're the holistic thing."On population behaviour"My research drifts more towards population problems, how can we influence population behaviour to drift one direction we deem desirable and stop drifting the other direction we deem undesirable."On MINDSPACE"MINDSPACE is an acronym used to describe nine different ways you can nudge people: 1) Messenger, 2) Incentives, 3) Norms, 4) default, 5) salience, 6) priming, 7) Affects, 8) Commitments, 9) Ego these are nine different tools.On nudging"A nudge isn't an aspect of our choice environment that exists out there and influences us one way or another. I think a nudge has to be intentionally put there to drift your behaviour in one way or another" "Fun nudges: "small plates are often recommended to people who try to lose weight. These can work on two levels. 1) perception - visually triggering your mind, 2) practical - you can only get the amount of food (that can be) on the small plate unless you stand up again and refill the plate. This is an example of nudging as long as you're in control of the amount of food. Remember, nudges are supposed to be about your free choice." "My favourite example of a nudge is like Shore Drive, which is a road in Chicago that has BIG turns that people often miss if they don't pay attention. [...] When you drive, you use the lines as an indicator for how fast you drive, so what they did was shorten the lines, so people would think they drove faster when approaching a turn. Now perceptually, as you drive, it looks for you like you're driving faster, and you'd hit the brakes and drive the appropriate speed through the turn." 

On the episode is Amina Al-Jardani and Amal Saif Al-Maani.Dr. Amina Al-Jardani is a Senior consultant microbiologist and the Director of the Central Public Health Laboratories under the Ministry of Health of Oman. She is leading the work of the national reference laboratories involved in the detection of infectious agents.Dr. Amal Saif Al-Maani is a Senior consultant pediatrician of infectious diseases and the Director of the Infection Prevention & Control Department under the Ministry of Health of Oman. She is working on the national program for IPC and the project for Antimicrobial Resistance.On working with a team."Healthcare is teamwork. A single person will go nowhere without the harmony of the team." - Dr. Amal Saif Al-Maani.On challenges in healthcare."As a healthcare professional, you will face many challenges. To really lead the change and achieve your goals, you need to have 5 P's - passion, persistence, partnerships, patience, persuasion." - Dr. Amina Al-Jardani.On creating awareness."The public is part of one health approach. It's not enough to spread the awareness between the doctors and physicians and leave the people who are taking advantage of the service unaware." - Dr. Amal Saif Al-Maani.

On the podcast is Bob Klaber.Dr. Bob Klaber is a  Consultant Paediatrician & Director of Strategy, Research & Innovation at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. He has a strong interest in behavioral insights work and leadership development.  Bob is a true role model when it comes to kindness. In the episode, he explains the value of kindness in delivering outstanding care and cultivating kindness in our organizations to deliver better results. I promise you that he has some exciting experiences to share. On kindness"Kindness is right at the heart of everything that is about care.""There is a lot of evidence that kindness in care leads to better outcomes."On opportunities in healthcare"Over the last 10-15 years, in England where I work, our healthcare system has been quite systematically unkind." Show notes and some recommendations from Bob:Find Bob on Twitter: @bobklaberTwitter: Conversation for Kindness. Organizations: The Hush Foundation by Prof. Catherine Crock is hosting an annual conference called The Gathering of Kindness.UK consultancy called the Kaleidoscope. Person to follow: Leonard Berry's research about kindnessBook: Intelligent Kindness by John Ballat & Penelope CamplingHow to measure kindness: Take a look at this publication by Simon Andersson and JulieBrownlie called Getting the measure of kindness: A guide for organisations

On the podcast is Rosie Bartel. Rosie Bartel is a widow, a mother, and a grandmother. In this episode, she shares her personal story.In 2009, Rosie underwent a total knee replacement that developed into an MRSA staph infection. The Healthcare-Associated Infection led to 55 surgeries, 200+ hospitalizations, and 100 blood transfusions. She has had sepsis and septic shock 12 times. Finally, she underwent a right leg amputation above the knee, which later developed into a total hip amputation with part of the pelvic bone removed. Rosie uses her stories to help and educate both patients, relatives, and healthcare professionals.On Infection"I don't think they realize how much one little infection can devastate a person forever."On being a patient with an HAI"It's much easier to sit in a chair and tell somebody about hand hygiene than to be laying under those white sheets where you don't have any control over your life.""I can't blame anybody for it, but let's look at all the ways that could fix the world and make it better for patients and safer for patients every single day."To purchase a copy of Rosie's book:Rosie's Story: A Story of Faith, Hope, and Survival: E-mail bartel1949@gmail.com$15.00 per copy in the USA / $20.00 overseas.

On the podcast is Cindie MaagaardToday's guest is Dr. Cindie Maagaard, an associate professor at the Department of Language and Communication at the University of Southern Denmark. She holds a Ph.D. in postmodern English literature. Since 2010, her passion for narratives has turned to investigate organizational communication. Since 2016 her research has increasingly focused on how narratives are used in contexts of health and medicine to help health professionals and patients understand and communicate about illness - and she is one of the leading experts in the field. Cindie has published research articles and book chapters on narrative medicine and is the co-editor of a brand new anthology of Danish and international literature written by and about patients and doctors. On narrative medicineA starting point for narrative medicine is that any medical perspective includes a patient's life experiences and relationships, worries, hopes, desires, and more. These perspectives are integrated into a medical perspective. On communicating more empathetically through narrativesGive the patient time in the beginning to talk, maybe beginning with a question. Tell me what I need to know about your situation and why you are here? And give the patient time to unfold that. Practice attention by reading.  Show notes: Recommendations from CindieThe Principles and Practice of Narrative MedicineThe Wounded StorytellerIllness as Metaphor and AIDS and its Metaphors

On the podcast is Nanja Holland Hansen.Nanja is a psychologist and one of the leading compassion experts in Denmark. She has worked at Stanford University and Copenhagen University Hospital, Rigshospitalet. She is a senior instructor at the Compassion Institute in California and the Co-developer of the Compassion Training Certification Program for professionals at Aarhus University. Nanja has also published several books and research articles about compassion and mental health.  On suffering"Compassion takes away the heaviness. It doesn't mean that there is less suffering. It's just how you meet that suffering. And that makes all the difference. On bringing back kindness"It's these everyday little moments where we can bring some kindness and care.""There is research showing that it takes only 40 seconds to show compassion. That's all it takes."Show notes: Effect of a Compassion Cultivation Training Program for Caregivers of People With Mental Illness in DenmarkHealthcare providers perspectives on compassion training: a grounded theory studyHealthcare's compassion crisis- TEDxPenn with Stephen TrzeciakCompassion Fatigue among Healthcare, Emergency, and Community Service Workers: A Systematic Review

On the podcast is Hugo Sax. Professor Hugo Sax is a medical doctor, board-certified in Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases with over 20 years of experience in Infection Prevention and Control. Until 2021, he was Head of the Infection Prevention Program at the University Hospital Zurich in Switzerland.He is currently a Research Fellow at the Department of Infectious Diseases at Bern University Hospital. He is also a board member and prev. President of Swissnoso, the Swiss National Center for Infection Prevention. He is a member of the First Challenge on Patient Safety at the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Chief Medical Border Officer at Zurich Airport. His research focuses on human factors and systems thinking in healthcare. He also created ‘My five moments for hand hygiene,' which has become a global standard. He teaches Human Factors to medical students and pilots and enjoys flying vintage aerobatic aircraft himself.On infection prevention"Now, I think we are in infection prevention 4.0. where system integration and data science are the big things"On interventions"You have to imagine the reality of people on the ground, and then design the intervention in a way that takes into account the context of the people"On human beings"It's all about realizing the strengths and weaknesses of human beings"

On the podcast is Seven Aghdassi. Seven works at the Institute of Hygiene and Environmental Medicine at the recognized Charité University Hospital in Berlin. Seven has a particular interest and specialized knowledge in automated cluster detection and automated surveillance systems. He has worked with the World Health Organization to develop the Infection Prevention and Control Assessment Framework (IPACF). Additionally, Seven recently won 3rd place in the German award for patient safety for the cluster detection system “CLAR” alongside his colleagues from Charité. He participates in the Charité Digital Clinician Scientist Program funded by the DFG, Charité, and the Berlin Institute of Health.On digitalization"The ultimate goal with the automation and digitalization should be to spend less time in front of a computer and more time doing actual patient care."On surveillance"Automated surveillance is certainly a target for optimization." On infection control"Good advice in life in general but specifically in healthcare and infection control is to be resilient and to see problems as not only problems but as the first step towards a solution."Seven Aghdassi on ResearchGate Affiliations1) Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Institute of Hygiene and Environmental Medicine, Berlin, Germany2) National Reference Center for Surveillance of Nosocomial Infections, Berlin, Germany3) Berlin Institute of Health at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, BIH Biomedical Innovation Academy, BIH Charité Digital Clinician Scientist Program, Berlin, Germany

On the podcast is Pierre Parneix.Pierre, a French medical doctor, has specialized in public health and infection control since 1992. He is the president of the French Society for Hospital Hygiene and heads up the southwestern France healthcare-associated infection control center based at the Bordeaux university hospital. Pierre was also one of the members of the COVID-19 commission for France for President Macron.Pierre focuses his work on antimicrobial resistance surveillance and prevention in hospitals and communication and intervention support in the field of healthcare-associated infection prevention. On innovation"Infection control is medical science, so you need to have innovation and change. But sometimes people are very reluctant to change, which is why making the change is difficult." "We need to show that innovation could help us to decrease the burden on infection but also help the professionals to do things more easily - any innovation should be helpful in some way." On the cost of outbreaks"It's known that outbreaks of multidrug-resistant organisms can be very expensive - we need to have progress and innovation in this area."

This episode is dedicated to all the frontline health care professionals who have shown immense courage every day during the covid 19 pandemic. Despite tough times, they overcome extraordinary challenges and save lives.On the podcast is Mette Find Andersen.Mette is an ICU nurse at one of the largest intensive care units in Denmark. She has also been the hygiene coordinator in the ward for more than eight years. During the beginning of the pandemic, Mette's ICU department quickly became full of the most affected patients with COVID-19. It was a scenario most people could not have foreseen.   In this episode, you will gain insights from one of the many frontline healthcare heroes. These stories must be told so we can learn from the pandemic and prepare for the next. On hygiene mentorshipThe most important is that we, as hygiene coordinators are visible in the department. On infection prevention in hospitalsDo proper hygiene, sanitize your hands, and take your mask off correctly to avoid contaminating yourself. It's been so important for us... take hygiene to the next level. It is the most important thing in a hospital ward. It is infection prevention.

On the podcast is Brett Mitchell. Brett is a professor of nursing at the University of Newcastle, Australia. He is an internationally recognized researcher in the field of infection prevention and control. Professor Mitchell has extensive clinical experience and strong academic skills with 150 peer-reviewed publications and oral conference presentations. He has authored several books and has been a speaker at numerous conferences in Australia and internationally. Brett is also Editor-in-Chief of the international peer-reviewed journal called Infection, Disease, and Health. In this episode, you will learn about the newest research in the area, the price of patient safety, and how you can work with the industry for impact. This is an episode you don't want to miss. On  infection prevention“What we found in the point-prevalence study is that essentially 1 in 10 people in hospitals had an infection acquired in hospital.”“For many things in infection-prevention control, the guidelines were generally relying on poor evidence.”On the price of patient safety“You can turn the study around and say that it is cost-effective to invest in improving the routine cleaning of hospitals because the investment is worth it in terms of reduction in infections and things like the length of stay.”On working with industry for impact“Ultimately, if we continually invest in one area, it is to the detriment of others. We need to be careful to invest in the right things – in this case, prevention of hospital-acquired infections – but we don't want to invest in things that won't be effective in the future. Therefore, we must look into things like cost-effectiveness to allow decision-makers to make reasonable decisions.”On the single most crucial advice for improving patient safety“Follow the data, follow the evidence.”

On the episode is Sille Krukow. Sille is a Nudge and behavioral Design Expert, a keynote speaker, TV Host, and Guest Lecturer across universities in the US, Sweden, the UK, and Spain. Sille has more than 15 years of experience conducting behavioral design studies, nudging consumers towards a greener and safer decision-making. She is credited as the developer of the Krukow methodology for generating nudge-based solutions for business results. She is also a mother of two, born and raised in Scandinavia.If you want to learn more about nudging and behavioral design and how to use them in your daily work, then this episode is for you.On how our surroundings impact our behaviors"90% of our decisions happen subconsciously, which means that it doesn't happen as a reaction to the information we got or the motivation we got. It happens as an intuitive reaction to our surroundings. So every time we find it hard to change our behavior, it's because our surroundings are not supporting us in the right way."On nudging"Nudges have been here ever since we started walking on this planet, because ever since we started influencing the design of our surroundings. So nudges are everywhere. And I think what we need to be able to identify them."On data"We tend to assume that we know exactly why people do what they do. But before we start observing and looking at interaction data, we're not going to be able to understand what goes on."

On this podcast, we are pleased to share a collection of short conversations with the researchers from the International Conference on Prevention & Infection Control (ICPIC) in Geneva, Switzerland, between 14 – 17th September.ICPIC offers a unique platform for researchers and experts worldwide to share their knowledge and practices concerning the prevention of healthcare-associated infections and control of antimicrobial resistance. In this podcast, you will hear conversations about interesting topics with:Matuesz Gajda who is doing his Ph.D. in Microbiology at Jagiellonian University in Kraków.Adriënne van der Schoor, PhD student currently working at Erasmus Medical Centre in Rotterdam. Delphine Berthod and Christelle Perdrieu, both working at Swissnoso in the surgical site infection surveillance.Dr. Prabin Shrestha, a representative of the Young Professional Development Society in Nepal.Dr. Taru Singh, working as a scientist in a Counsel of Medical Research in New Delhi, India. 

On the episode is Patricia Stone. Patricia is a professor ​​of Health Policy at the Columbia University School of Nursing. She directs the School of Nursing's Center for Health Policy and the Center for Improving Palliative Care for Vulnerable Adults with Multiple Chronic Conditions. For the past two decades, the majority of her research has focused on the prevention of infections in vulnerable adults across healthcare settings. She is also the Chief Editor of the American Journal of Infection Control. Patricia stone on the most important learning from the pandemic.I think the pandemic just shone a light on how important infection prevention and control are. It is not just hospitals and nursing homes. It is everybody's problem.Patricia stone on how to gain and retain nursing staff going forward.Culture, money makes a difference, and we all work for money, but the organizational culture is the most important thing. People go into healthcare for a reason, and that reason is often to provide good care, and if they see improvement areas, they should have a culture where it is okay to bring it up and come with suggestions. Patricia stone on how to improve hygiene in you're organizationIt takes a village. You can't do it by yourself. People like to be taught by peers, so you might need to find a nurse to help you talk with nurses, for example. 

On the podcast is Adrian Barnett. Adrian is a professor of statistics at the School of Public Health at the Queensland University of Technology. Adrian is the past president of the Statistical Society of Australia. He has published almost 300 peer-reviewed articles and is the author of two books. Today's episode discusses integrity in research. You will hear about ethical considerations when conducting research and learn about publication bias, ghost authorship, and funding considerations. Adrian has some interesting experiences to share. You will hear why he has had some of his worst experiences as a scientist working on infection control projects, including legal threats and personal attacks on his character. You will learn that research is not always as straightforward as you might think. On research integrity“Well for me it means doing research carefully and transparently. I see a lot of people these days rushing studies in order to meet some of these crazy publication targets that are going on and I think that is when integrity really can suffer. We need to take time in planning our studies. 

On the podcast is Maria Vandbakk-Ruether. Maria is an infectious disease expert and hygiene doctor. As the section leader of the hygiene department at the Vestfold Hospital in the Southeastern part of Norway, she has hands-on experience with infection prevention and control. Maria's passion is antibiotic stewardship and the teaching of basic hygiene principles. Today's episode will focus on these crucial topics and their impact on global organizational health. On servicing patients with multiresistant bacterias.By the time you get involved in such patients, you cannot do much to help a patient. This helplessness is such a bad feeling that you just can't help a patient. On learning from each other in hygiene measures I think it is important to combine practical and simulation training. You have to learn how to identify risks and preventative measures and understand how germs spread and the difference between contact and airborne spreading. 

On the podcast is Mary-Louise McLaws. Mary-Louise is a professor of Epidemiology at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, and an Advisor to the World Health Organization (WHO). Her expertise includes Infection prevention and control, surveillance, hospital infection, outbreaks, and patient safety. Mary-Louise performed the first national prevalence survey of healthcare-associated infections. She developed the first standardized surveillance and analysis system for HAI on behalf of the Australian Ministry of Health.On working for WHOYou meet lots of people and appreciate all of the challenges they have around the world. On preparing for AMRI think it is a very salient reminder, but sadly, the world often doesn't take these reminders seriously until we are on the precipice of disaster. 

On the podcast is Dr. Seif Salem Al-Abri, the Director-General for Disease Surveillance and Control at the Ministry of Health of Oman. Seif is a practicing consultant in Infectious Diseases at the Royal hospital of Oman, and he has been the head of the infectious diseases department and head of medicine.He has done his training at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital and Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. He is an accredited Royal College of Physicians educator, an international advisor for the Royal College of Physicians of London, and a member of the Governing Council of the National University for Science and technology. Finally, he is an associate editor to Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal, Journal of Infection and Public Health, and Annals of Clinical Microbiology and Antimicrobials.A few key takeaways: On overcoming Antimicrobial ResistanceWe know what should be done; unfortunately, still, to this day,  I  get calls from hospitals, from colleagues. They think it's a business of the infection, professional control. And the infectious diseases or microbiology, it's not. It's the business of everybody. It starts from the decision-makers, down to the community, down to the general population, because they will go to, they will go to a health center insisting on antibiotics. On getting publishedResearch and published papers are one of the best career investments and boosters, career posters, so do your best to study and write.On changes in Healthcare-Associated Infections over timeI think it's too soon to find this because you need to measure it if you want to manage it. 

On the podcast is Inge Kristensen. Inge is the Chief Executive at the Danish Society for Patient Safety. She is an experienced leader in healthcare and social services, dedicated to quality improvement and patient safety. Inge has extensive experience in leading large-scale projects in hospitals and community care and creating cross-sectoral collaboration focusing on quality improvement. Inge is an experienced moderator, public speaker, and contributor to whitepapers, books, and journals on improvement in healthcare.A few key takeaways:On how to approach life"I get up every morning and think we could do better today than we did yesterday."On psychological safety and its importance"You feel secure when you are in your role, in your function in healthcare. It has a lot to do with the ability to have an open and free discussion about errors, about improvement, at your workplace. "Book recommendations from Inge: Managing the Unexpected: Resilient Performance in an Age of Uncertainty  Download  Psychological Safety resources (English / Danish)Psychological Safety Toolbox

On the podcast is Alexandra Peters. Alexandra Peters is part of the University Hospitals of Geneva and World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre. It leads research and educational program development for Clean Hospitals, a global network dedicated to making hospitals safer through improved environmental hygiene. The group aims to conduct and support academic research, promote interdisciplinary, change how healthcare institutions view environmental hygiene, and raise standards worldwide.Alexandra's background in health security and biological security and her current work focuses on infection prevention and control. Specifically, she is working in healthcare environmental hygiene and hand hygiene. She is passionate about infection prevention, security, human behavior, and teaching. Her goals are to champion patient safety and improve public health through awareness-raising and transdisciplinary collaboration.  A few key takeaways: On resource alignment...in Europe, generally, nurses are overworked. During the pandemic, they're exhausted, and the people are clapping for them at the same time that some European hospitals are cutting budgets for staff.On culture in healthcare settingsCulture may be socially constructed, but that doesn't make its effect any less real, and it needs to be taken into consideration with any health intervention.On finances in hospitals And so, with the way that budgets work within hospitals, it's easy to say we need x million dollars to buy a da Vinci robot, and here's how much money we're getting back from every operation. But how do we quantify money that's not spent? You know, how do we identify a pandemic that's been averted? And what budgets are that coming out of, and how do we prove that we're taking care of our cleaners better, or that we're using products based on scientific best practices and the knowledge we have today?  How do we prove that that's the reason why your hospital saved 40 million this year. And so that's sort of the big thing that we're also trying to work on. Connect with us on Twitter: Dr. Marco Bo Hansen @marcobohansenClean Hospitals@Clean_Hospitals

On the podcast is Kelley Boston. Kelley is a Senior Associate with Infection Prevention & Management Associates.  She brings a background in public health and epidemiology to her infection prevention practice.  She holds a Masters of Public Health from The University of Texas Health Science Center Houston School of Public Health, and did her undergraduate work at The University of Texas at Austin.  She holds certifications in infection prevention and control (CIC), healthcare quality (CPHQ) and is recognized as a Fellow of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (FAPIC).   Ms. Boston's primary experience is in acute care, and has held leadership roles in multi-facility systems that have included both community hospitals and major academic teaching centers, and  specialized practice areas including pediatrics, transplant, and trauma.  She was honored as an APIC Hero of Infection Prevention in 2016 for her work in program integration and development within a large multi-facility healthcare system, leading to significant sustained improvement in infection outcomes. Ms. Boston is an active member of both the Society for Healthcare Epidemiologists of America (SHEA) and the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC), where she has served as president and board member in multiple local chapters, and at the national level on the Communications Committee and APIC Text Editorial Panel.  She is currently the Editor of the APIC Text Online: APIC Text of Infection Control and Epidemiology. A few key takeaways: On resource alignmentYou got to look at the cost-benefit trade. If I do this audit, what do I have to take time away from? Nobody has enough time or enough staff. It is all about the resources. On working in Infection PreventionYou will never reach the end of your IP knowledge. And if you think you have, they will throw something like Coronavirus at you. Do not harm. Hospitals can be dangerous places. By the end of the day, someone is safer for the work you have done.On workplace cultureHow do we build a culture where we can help each other and create high performing teams? The importance of prevention (before the damage happens) – and the talk about why it is difficult to document successful prevention results. On our role as healthcare workersAt the end of the day, someone is safer for the work that you have done.Hospitals should be safe places where people come to get the medical care that they need and go home better. You will never be finished with the job. On dataGenerally, in the field about 40% looking at what happened, and 60% looking at what is happening and then all of the other daily tasks.Ask yourself, what are we collecting and how are we going to take action on it?  Connect with us on Twitter: Dr. Marco Bo Hansen @marcobohansenKelley Boston@epikelley

On the podcast is Marieluise Einfalt. She is an infection prevention and control nurse and a highly trusted academic expert in hospital hygiene. She serves as the Head of the Hygiene team at the Ordensklinikum Linz Elisabethin, one of the largest hospitals in Northern Austria, where she teaches about hospital hygiene at the IMC Krems University.In the podcast she discusses her passion for nursing, her take on Infection Prevention strategies, and how she believes that hand hygiene is cool!Are you curious to know how they work with infection prevention in Austria and who are the most resistant to behavioural changes? Do you know what Hygiene mentors are, and do you want to learn about the KISS program? Learn more by giving this podcast a listen. A few key takeaways: Marieluise believes that “Hygiene is not everything, but everything without hygiene is nothing.”She is a fan of the new generation of healthcare workers and their positive approach to hygiene. She wants to remind us that small steps make a difference when it comes to infection prevention strategies. On nursing"Do it with passion or leave it."On hand hygiene "Hand hygiene is cool!  Händehygiene ist cool!"On innovations in infection prevention"I think it is necessary to develop devices that support healthcare workers, not to forget about hand hygiene before and after some actions - in my opinion, there is still room for improvement of hand hygiene."She encourages us to approach healthcare with purpose and passion. We apologize for any small buzzes in the podcast as this was recorded remotely to be mindful of COVID19 social distancing guidelines across Europe. Connect with us on Twitter: Dr. Marco Bo Hansen @marcobohansenMarieluise Einfalt@praeventionistaOrdensklinikum Linz#teamordensklinikum

On the podcast is Peter Wilson. Peter is a consultant microbiologist at the University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust where he has been working since 1990. His primary focus is on antibiotic advice and infection control in critical care. He has dedicated a great deal of his time and research to the treatment and prevention of transmission of hospital-acquired infections.In the podcast he discusses the treatment and prevention of transmission of hospital-acquired infections, innovations in healthcare, and antimicrobial chemotherapy. A few key takeaways: Peter on hand hygiene in healthcare“There is a difference in hand hygiene when an individual thinks that they are being observed, and when they are not being observed.”Peter on carbapenem-resistant gram-negative bacteria“They can be very difficult to treat, there is a very limited range of antibiotics that can be used to deal with them…if you have good antimicrobial stewardship good cleaning, and good hand hygiene it is possible to prevent them from spreading. In addition, if you use a diversity of antibiotics, that helps too.”We apologize for any small buzzes in the podcast, as this was recorded remotely to be mindful of COVID19 social distancing guidelines across Europe.  

On the podcast is Frode Forland. Dr. Forland serves as Specialist Director of Infectious Diseases and Global Health at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health. He also is an Associate Professor at the University of Tromsø. He has clinical experience from working as a general practitioner, municipal, and county doctor. Previously he was a Director of Department at the Norwegian Board of Health Supervision and a division director in the Norwegian Directorate of Health. Frode also served as a senior expert at the ECDC and the Royal Tropical Institute in the NetherlandsA few key takeaways: Frode on building strong health systems“You need to build health systems that can cope with any disease.”Frode on infectious diseases“Ever year, there are 1.2 million people dying of TB. Every year there are 800,000 people dying from AIDs. Every year 600,000 are dying of malaria. We very much know how to diagnose, prevent, and treat and we haven't been able to get across the world to really do so. Now the whole world has jumped around corona and that has been extremely needed and useful, but I also wish we could have jumps like that for developing vaccines with the three diseases just mentioned.” We apologize for any small buzzes in the podcast as this was recorded remotely to be mindful of COVID19 social distancing guidelines across Europe. 

On the podcast is Joost Hopman.  Joost is a consultant microbiologist at the Department of Medical Microbiology at Radboud University Hospital in the Netherlands. He has served as a consultant for Doctors without Borders Amsterdam and is an advisory board member of the Infection Control African Network (ICAN) and a board member of the Dutch IPC section of the Netherlands Society of Medical Microbiology (NVMM). Published in over 70 clinical studies, Joost is notably an expert in effective infection prevention and control measures, COVID-19 among healthcare workers, and tropical medicine. A few key takeaways: Joost on Infection Prevention Control  “Infection prevention is the most affordable way of dealing with infections.” “To me as a specialist in IP, prevention is really the best way of going forward. There are many beautiful examples worldwide where prevention is making the difference.  Joost on making a difference in healthcare “Focus on your own passion. Focus on your own ideas and ideals.”  We apologize for any small buzzes in the podcast as this was recorded remotely to be mindful of COVID19 social distancing guidelines across Europe. 

On the podcast this week is Hans Jørn Kolmos. Hans has been the Chief Physician of Clinical Microbiology at Odense University Hospital and the University of Southern Denmark. He is a leading researcher in the healthcare-associated infection MRSA. Dr. Marco Bo Hansen, Sani nudge Medical Director had the privilege to sit down with Hans as he shared career highlights spanning randomised controls in infection prevention. Tune in to hear about the synergies between Infection Control nurses and Microbiologists,  the efficacy of masks, and the impact of COVID-19 on other infectious diseases.A few key takeaways:Hans on COVID-19·      “There is an important lesson to take on from COVID-19 and that is, it really matters if you do hand hygiene or not.  Do you remember to do it? Do you do it with the right technique? This will change the disease pattern in the future.” Hans on healthcare associated infections and primum non nocere – first, do no harm·      “Irrespective that you are busy, etcetera, the first rule for every medical doctor is do no harm.” ·      “Hospital acquired infections are a kind of harm that we put on patients… that is the issue of harm. It is important that we have this in mind all of the time. First rule. Do no harm.” If you work in infection prevention, this is a can't miss podcast!

On the podcast is Else Smith. Else is an MD, PHD and the previous CEO of the Danish Health Authority. She has been a board member of the Global World Health Organization, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and for the European Medicines Agency. She has also extensive research and clinical experience within infectious diseases.Dr. Marco Bo Hansen, Sani nudge Medical Director had the privilege to sit down with Else as she shared career highlights spanning across her specialty in public health, her work with Aids and HIV infections in women in the mid 1980's, and building the WHO directed influenza pandemic plan in Denmark. A few key takeaways:On corona's impact: “We achieve a stronger awareness of hygiene.”On corona testing: “Of course in general, testing helps us keep track.”On keeping our healthcare workers safe: “If you don't have healthy healthcare workers, then there is no health for the population.”If you work in infection prevention, this is a can't miss podcast!Tune in to learn Else's top 3 tips for working in disease prevention and hygiene!