Tannoys to promote hand hygiene

Sensor-alerted tannoys encourage people to clean their hands

Tannoys telling visitors to wash their hands have been installed at hospitals in Leicestershire and Rutland.

The address systems, triggered by sensors, are to encourage people to use alcohol gels in 11 hospitals.

The move is part of a four-month drive to boost hygiene in hospitals across the East Midlands.

It also aims to reassure the public about infections such as MRSA and C-Difficile, as well as show them how simple it is to reduce the risk.

The tannoys encourage people to use the hospital alcohol gel dispensers.

Dirty hands

Hospital staff say at least 30 seconds are needed for proper hand-washing, including wrists and thumbs.

As part of the initiative, NHS staff targeted passers-by outside a public toilet in Mansfield, using light box technology to show how thoroughly they had washed their hands.

Infection control nurse Diane Churchill Hogg said: "That's the whole idea of the light-boxes, to actually highlight how good your technique is and the areas of hands that are missed during hand-washing."

Dame Catherine Elcoat of NHS East Midlands added: "We can all prevent ourselves from getting infections if we wash our hands thoroughly and regularly.

"It's the single most important thing to help combat the spread of infection."