By Healthcare Facilities Today

CHARLOTTE, N.C.  - DebMed, creator of the world's first electronic hand hygiene compliance monitoring system based on the World Health Organization's (WHO's) Five Moments for Hand Hygiene, will be active supporters of International Infection Prevention Week (IIPW), which occurs globally October 20-26. IIPW brings awareness to the work that is already being done, and the new technologies available to enable greater progress on the road to combat the spread of infection in clinical settings and prevent unnecessary healthcare-associated infections (HAIs).

In an official kickoff to IIPW, Charlotte, NC, mayor Patsy B. Kinsey honored DebMed's request to issue a Charlotte proclamation yesterday, declaring October 20 as "Clean Your Hands, Charlotte!" Day. The proclamation is aimed to involve the local community in creating a climate that supports proper hand cleaning, fosters the knowledge and confidence to discuss hand hygiene with medical staff, and helps to cease the spread of preventable infections and illness.

"While we focus on preventing the spread of healthcare-associated infections all year long, International Infection Prevention Week presents a wonderful opportunity to engage and educate patients about the problem, while also recognizing the healthcare facilities that have implemented electronic monitoring of hand hygiene, which is proven to increase compliance to reduce these infections. We are honored to have a designated day to celebrate clean hands here in our own backyard," said Heather McLarney, vice president of marketing at DebMed. "Our ultimate goal is to increase awareness of everyone's role in infection prevention on both an international and local scale. Infection prevention is everyone's responsibility."

DebMed has also connected with the IIPW mission through blog posts exploring the WHO Five Moments for Hand Hygiene, and their importance in the healthcare industry leading up to the week. There will also be information posted on DebMed's Facebook page and website for patients CleanHandsForHealth.com.

To commemorate IIPW and continue the theme of infection prevention throughout the year, the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology APIC has created the "Infection Prevention and You" campaign with a new website and resources for both patients and healthcare professionals. The campaign features an infographic illustrating the steps patients can take to support infection prevention efforts in healthcare facilities and help lower their risk of infection.

IIPW raises awareness of the role infection prevention plays to improve patient safety. Established in 1986 by President Ronald Reagan, APIC has spearheaded the annual effort to highlight the importance of infection prevention among healthcare professionals, administrators, legislators, and consumers. It is now formally recognized in many areas around the world including the U.S., Australia, the United Kingdom, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. As IIPW expands, more patients benefit from safer healthcare practices and reduced threat of healthcare-associated infections. Learn more about IIPW on Facebook and Twitter (#IIPW and #infectionprevention).

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 27 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. 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 US operations based in Charlotte, NC, Deb Group is comprised of 21 companies operating in 16 countries.  For more information, visit www.debgroup.com.