Method for monitoring hand hygiene compliance

• US 20040150527A1
• Filed: 01/30/2003
• Published: 08/05/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Judith Lee Harper, William Anthony Harper
• Original Assignee: Judith Lee Harper, William Anthony Harper
• Inventors: Harper, William Anthony, Harper, Judith Lee
• Granted Patent: US 7,293,645 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/573.1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/80 Implements for cleaning or washing the skin of surgeons or patients
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/245 Reminder of hygiene compliance policies, e.g. of washing hands

Abstract

While clean, disinfected hands are widely recognized as a principle means for controlling the spread of infections, disease, and similar health problems to both self and others, the prompt and repeated application of such materials as soap and water or waterless gels is necessary to maintain sanitary hands. So well recognized is this fact that many professional and governmental guidelines backed by regulations have been drawn to enforce compliance. This invention relates to compliance monitoring of hand sanitizing fluids and gels used to reduce the hand-borne transmission of pathogens. Disclosed is a simple, low-cost method of which a key aspect is the employment of a wristband dispenser with plural individual applications of hand sanitizing fluid in a convenient dispensing form. Inclusion of a use activated timing device provides a means of monitoring an individual'"'"'s elapsed time since last use.

Claims

1. A method for compliance monitoring of hand hygiene, comprising the steps of:

a) providing a personal hand sanitizing fluid dispensing means to be worn or carried by a person;

b) constructing said dispensing means in such a manner that a discrete physical record is created for each dispersed application of said hand sanitizing fluid used in a single act of hand sanitizing;

c) applying a counting means to said physical record of every said act of hand sanitizing whereby a number corresponding to the count of total acts is obtained; and

,

d) associating said number with a predetermined time period said personal hand sanitizing fluid dispensing means was worn or carried by said person whereby a value is obtained which gauges the degree of hand hygiene compliance for said person.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the dispensing means is worn on the wrist of said person.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the dispensing means is worn on the body of said person

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the dispensing means is attached to the body of said person by a lanyard.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the dispensing means is attached to the clothing of said person.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the dispensing means is carried in a pocket of said person.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the dispensing means includes construction with plural flexible blister wells each filled with an amount of said hand sanitizing fluid sufficient for a single act of hand sanitizing.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein a discrete said blister well is ruptured in dispensing said fluid whereby the resulting broken form of said ruptured well creates said physical record.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein a discrete said blister well is emptied in dispensing said fluid whereby the emptied said blister well undergoes a shape change thereby creating said physical record.

10. The method of claim 1 further including the step of a timing means capable of determining a duration of time since the dispensing of said fluid for said act of hand sanitizing.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein said timing means is the time required to substantially evaporation all of the residual hand sanitizing fluid left in said dispensing means from the time when said fluid was dispensed and a substantially dry condition occurs.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein said timing means is the time required to substantially evaporation all of the residual hand sanitizing fluid left in said dispensing means from the time when said fluid was dispensed and a substantially dry condition reveals or obscures a mark or color.

13. The method of claim 11 or claim 12 whereby the time period for said residual hand sanitizing fluid to substantially evaporate is typically between 1 minute and 60 minutes.

14. The method of claim 10 wherein said timing means is a predetermined timed chemical process resulting in a recognizable color or mark modification upon completion.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein the counting means is to visually count said physical record to obtain said number.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein the counting means is to machine count said physical record to obtain said number.

17. A method for compliance monitoring of hand hygiene, comprising the steps of:

a) providing a personal hand sanitizing fluid dispensing means to be worn or carried by a person;

b) constructing said dispensing means in such a manner that applications of hand sanitizing fluid are dispensed from a single fluid reservoir for acts of hand sanitizing;

c) applying a measuring means to said reservoir whereby the number of hand sanitizing actions is deduced; and

,

d) associating said number with a predetermined time period said personal hand sanitizing fluid dispensing means was worn or carried by said person whereby a value is obtained which gauges the degree of hand hygiene compliance for said person.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the dispensing means is worn on the wrist of said person.

19. The method of claim 17 wherein the dispensing means is worn on the body of said person.

20. The method of claim 17 wherein the dispensing means is attached to the body of said person by a lanyard.

21. The method of claim 17 wherein the dispensing means is attached to clothing of said person.

22. The method of claim 17 wherein the dispensing means is carried in a pocket of said person.

23. The method of claim 17 wherein the measuring means is to visually or tactilely examine the amount of remaining or missing fluid.

24. The method of claim 17 wherein the measuring means is to mechanically measure the volume of remaining or missing fluid.

25. The method of claim 17 wherein the measuring means is to mechanically measure the weight of the remaining or missing fluid.

26. A system for compliance monitoring of hand hygiene, which includes:

a) a personal hand sanitizing fluid dispensing unit means worn or carried by a person; and

b) a compliance monitoring recording means capable of capturing hand sanitizing fluid dispersal data, said recording means also worn or carried by said person.