Abstract
This study investigated the impact of a fresh scent on the rate of hand hygiene compliance (HHC) among novice healthcare providers. In all, 165 participants examined a standardized patient with one sample exposed to fresh scent (N=79) and the other exposed to the standard environment (N=86). Hand hygiene behaviours were tracked before patient contact using video surveillance. The standard environment group had an HHC rate of 51% whereas participants in the fresh scent group had a higher HHC rate of 80% (P<0.001). These data demonstrate that hand hygiene behaviour may be subconsciously influenced by cues in the environment.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 79-81 |
| Number of pages | 3 |
| Journal | Journal of Hospital Infection |
| Volume | 85 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Sep 2013 |
Keywords
- Behavioural assessment
- Hand hygiene
- Patient safety
- Priming
- Scent
- Simulation
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Microbiology (medical)
- Infectious Diseases
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Birnbach, D. J., King, D., Vlaev, I., Rosen, L. F., & Harvey, P. D. (2013). Impact of environmental olfactory cues on hand hygiene behaviour in a simulated hospital environment: A randomized study. Journal of Hospital Infection, 85(1), 79-81. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhin.2013.06.008