Countess of Chester Hospital clinicians have returned from a special trip to Uganda where they have been supporting a rural hospital with reducing risks from the spread of infection.
This visit was part of an 18 month programme between the Countess of Chester and Kisiizi Hospital in Uganda, made possible thanks to funding through a joint project with the Tropical Health Education Trust (THET) and the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Four senior nursing leads spent two weeks with the remote 300 bed rural healthcare provider in the Rukungiri district of South West Uganda.
They were sharing their expertise on patient safety culture and infection prevention and control, including hand hygiene techniques.
The emphasis has been on developing safer working practices, through introducing systems for education, training, monitoring, auditing and reporting.
This trip was particularly unusual in that the clinical team also took a local carpenter Paul Benson with them, to work with staff at Kisiizi, building mobile hand washing stations that have been designed as part of the project.
Lead infection prevention and control nurse at The Countess of Chester Hospital and trip organiser Samantha Walker said: “We haven’t just focussed our activity around the hospital - we also visited schools and the wider community to share tips on preventing the spread of germs, to help people stay well.
“Working with Kisiizi has shown us that making simple changes can have a lasting effect on how everyone sees hand hygiene and patient safety as part of the day job. Regular auditing, reporting and providing feedback to staff can really help, something we do routinely in the UK – but is less common practice in Uganda.”
Deputy director of nursing at the Countess of Chester Hospital Sian Williams added: “We talk a lot about being safe, kind and effective in everything we do at The Countess. This trip to Kisiizi was our chance to share what this means for us in both a personal and professional capacity.”
