DebMed Brings Focus on Patient Safety to HIMSS 2013
Reducing Readmissions and Hospital Acquired Infections by Leading the Change to Electronic Monitoring of Hand Hygiene
CHARLOTTE, N.C., Feb. 26, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- DebMed®, the creator of the world's first and only electronic hand hygiene compliance monitoring system based on the World Health Organization's (WHO) "Five Moments for Hand Hygiene" is exhibiting at the Healthcare Information Management and Systems Society (HIMSS13) annual meeting in New Orleans, March 4-6 (booth # 8747).
With patient safety and readmissions mounting concerns for healthcare organizations, DebMed is providing a solution to help reduce readmissions, increase patient safety and decrease healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). With the first-of-its-kind innovative system, the DebMed GMS™ (Group Monitoring System), healthcare facilities are now able to achieve breakthrough levels of quality while reducing costs, both critical priorities of hospitals as they move toward becoming Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs). Hospitals using the DebMed GMS and its supporting improvement tools have experienced increases in hand hygiene compliance, ultimately decreasing infections and therefore improving patient safety.
HAIs affect hundreds of millions of patients worldwide every year, leading to more serious illness, prolonged hospital stays, higher costs to patients and their families, additional financial burden on the health-care system and, critically, often the tragic loss of life. At any time more than 1.4 million patients worldwide are suffering from hospital acquired infections. In the U.S. alone, HAIs are responsible for an estimated two million infections and almost 100,000 deaths (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2011) each year.
By following recommended guidelines and implementing technologies facilities can achieve value-based, data-driven, patient-centered care.
"We created a system that transforms direct observation to a real-time, research-based technology that is more accurate, reliable and helps improve patient safety in healthcare settings worldwide," said Paul Alper, vice president strategy and business development for DebMed. "Electronic hand hygiene monitoring is an imperative in this day and age, and should be a priority for healthcare executives. We believe that technology, mandates and quality of care have converged and the time is now for positive, impactful change. The DebMed GMS enables technology-enabled quality care, and empowers healthcare organizations to lead the change."
The DebMed GMS works by electronically monitoring healthcare workers' hand hygiene activity and provides feedback on compliance rates in real-time. The system reports compliance based on the WHO's "Five Moments for Hand Hygiene" using an evidence-based, statistically valid algorithm, making it the only hand hygiene system to meet the WHO's "Save Lives: Clean Your Hands" recommendation.
Because electronic monitoring systems are impartial, unbiased and the only way to capture and report on 100 percent of hand hygiene events, not just the fraction of 1 percent recorded by human observation, they eliminate the human factor and, with it, the Hawthorne Effect. This phenomenon happens when people know they are being watched or observed -- they tend to be on their best behavior. Research has shown that this will lead to overstated and unreliable compliance data.
For more information on DebMed, visit www.debmed.com and HIMSS booth #8747.
About DebMed®
DebMed is the healthcare program of the Deb Group. The DebMed program offers innovative hand hygiene products, electronic monitoring technology and improvement tools to support hand hygiene compliance. The DebMed® GMS™ (Group Monitoring System) is the world's first group monitoring system to report hand hygiene compliance rates in real-time based on the World Health Organization's (WHO) "Five Moments for Hand Hygiene" and to date has recorded more than 16 million hand hygiene events. The electronic monitoring system is being utilized in a four year, multi-site research project being conducted by the Columbia University School of Nursing and funded by a $1.2 million grant from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). It is the first study aimed at reducing healthcare-associated infections in pediatric long-term care facilities by improving staff compliance with hand hygiene guidelines. Deb is the first hand hygiene company in the world to provide actionable information along with its hand hygiene products to help drive best practices and improved outcomes for patients worldwide.
For more information on the study or DebMed, visit www.debmed.com.
About Deb Group
Possessing international scale and strong local market presence, Deb Group provides innovative skin care programs for all types of workplace and public environments, spanning industrial, commercial, healthcare and food sectors. Headquartered in the United Kingdom with U.S. operations based in Charlotte, NC, Deb Group is comprised of 21 companies operating in 16 countries. For more information, visit www.debgroup.com.
SOURCE DebMed
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