How a Russian Medical Research Centre is improving patient safety

OPHARDT RX dispenser systems selected for a renowned St. Petersburg hospital

(Last update: August 14, 2020) The Almazov National Medical Research Centre in St. Petersburg is both one of Russia’s most important healthcare facilities and most respected research centres.

The research centre features some of Russia’s finest medical researchers who are on the hunt for the next breakthrough in medical science. Conversely, on the patient side, the facility is paying significant attention to preventing the break out of infections.

Looking down the corridors reveals the respect this institution has for the value of hand hygiene. Here, numerous hand sanitizing dispensers offer staff the opportunity rid themselves of pathogens.

This facility has understood the most critical fact in patient safety – around 80 percent of all infections are transmitted via the hands.

This fact alone was enough for the clinic to decide to pay more attention to its dispensing equipment – concluding that state-of-the-art equipment would enable them to improve their hand hygiene program.

The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated just how important a well-planned dispenser infrastructure is in supporting infection prevention. Hospital staff at the Almazov Hospital have been treating patients infected with the novel coronavirus since the beginning of the pandemic. We spoke with Hygiene Specialist Ludmila Shirkova to learn more about the hospital’s existing situation and how they plan to further expand their dispenser infrastructure.

Decision reached after Campus visit

Through open discussions with hand sanitizer producer Lysoform Russia, OPHARDT hygiene’s dispenser systems quickly became the focus of the hygiene managers at Almazov. The first step was a visit to OPHARDT hygiene’s Compliance Campus – the Centre for Hand Hygiene – in Issum, Germany. At the mini-hospital from the future, they caught a glimpse of the endless possibilities with OPHARDT dispensing technologies. The RX series and ingo-man® plus dispensers satisfied the diverse needs of the Russian hospital. Both systems offered touchless and manual variations, featured endless mounting solutions and allow for the use of products from different manufacturers – fulfilling all requirements. The so-called Euro bottle format of the dispensers ensured supply flexibility and security.

“We use hygiene solutions from various suppliers and are therefore dependent on an open, independent system. Each station and various staff members have different preferences regarding hand disinfectant,” explained Ludmila Shirokova, infection control expert at Almazov Medical Research Centre.

For the St. Petersburg facility, quality was another decisive criteria. The high-quality materials and reputation of OPHARDT dispensers gave them confidence they were purchasing a dependable, sustainable hand hygiene  product.. The convenient front removal of pumps also ensured simple maintenance and servicing of the devices.

The final decision to introduce the dispenser systems was made during a hygiene conference at Almazov Hospital, where the clinic’s decision makers were immediately impressed by the featured devices and their accessories.

The details that distinguish a good dispenser

The hospital elected to install two Ophardt dispensers – the ingo-man plus (IMP) and RX 5 T touchless dispenser. The IMPs were delivered in high-visibility colours, which increase their frequency of use by attracting attention from patients, visitors and healthcare staff. The healthcare facility also opted to include OPHARDT’s most flexible dispenser – the innovative RX 5 T dispenser model. The touch free hand hygiene dispenser, made of robust ABS plastic, can be mounted on the wall, placed on counter tops as a standalone unit, or mounted on hygiene stands.

“Following the introduction of the new hygiene dispensers in our centre, we have seen a clear increase in disinfectant consumption. We have also noticed a greater awareness of hand hygiene among the workforce, which is very positive”

Ludmila Shirokova, infection control expert at Almazov Medical Research Centre

More importantly for the St. Petersburg facility, the RX5T brings hand disinfection directly to the patient’s bed – at the so-called point-of-care. As healthcare staff face increasing workloads, the availability of hygiene solutions close to the patient plays a key role in improving compliance. A total of 60 RX5T dispensers were installed, especially on hygiene-sensitive wards in the facility. The children’s wards, maternity wards and intensive care wards were the focal points for the no touch dispensers. OPHARDT’s renowned mounting solutions enable the dispensers to be installed directly at both patient beds and incubators, ensuring maximum protection for both adult and infant patients.

Another major factor for selecting the RX5T devices, was that the touchless technology in the dispenser reduces the risk of cross-contamination. Touchless dispensers are also more user-friendly, and have been proven to positively influence hand hygiene behaviour of medical staff.

“Following the introduction of the new hygiene dispensers in our centre, we have seen a clear increase in disinfectant consumption. We have also noticed a greater awareness of hand hygiene among the workforce, which is very positive,” said Shirokova, satisfied with the introduction of the dispensers.

Of course, hand hygiene is not only dependent on the hardware. The Medical Research Centre has taken the call for increased hand hygiene compliance seriously, and carried out further measures for infection protection as they roll out the new RX 5 T and ingo-man® dispensers. The hospital hygienists of the clinic have rolled out more literature on the proper hand disinfection methods, and have carried out an internal survey in order to improve performance in the future.

Between February and April of this year, Ms. Shirkova and her team at the Almazov Hospital identified and installed 200 additional dispensers in areas deemed critical to boost dispenser infrastructure. With a rise in infections expected with the start of the autumn season, the hospital will invest in a further 500 sanitizer dispensers to protect staff and patients from acquiring the infection.

Learn more about the RX dispenser family.