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This new brief from WHO provides insights into available strategies and approaches to hand hygiene improvement in health care facilities (HCFs) in support of the new United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)/World Health Organization (WHO) Hand Hygiene for All Initiative, including sustainable interventions. The brief draws on learning from legacy work and the current evidence base. It emphasizes the synergistic relationship between IPC and WASH in HCFs and summarizes how joint action and collaboration is essential for improvement in the context of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) response and beyond.

This updated two page flier, jointly produced by WHO, UNICEF and WaterAid, details the latest burden from poor WASH and IPC in health care, the role WASH and IPC serve in preventing AMR and the benefits of joint action and investments. It also provides examples of effective, collaborative action at the global, national and facility level. It allows anyone working in these fields to speak confidently about the current core issues, as well as solutions and will ultimately drive quality of care given how critical WASH and IPC measures are for AMR reduction and overall patient safety.

This document is a guidance note on elevating the role of cleaners in healthcare facilities written by Hayley Schram, Lindsay Denny, and Global Water 2020 in preparation for 'Thank Your Cleaner Day' on October 21. This document proposes 12 actions to elevate cleaners in healthcare facilities and provides resources for key stakeholders, organizations, and individuals working with or interested in environmental cleanliness and cleaners.

The Hand Hygiene for All Initiative presents an opportunity to create a step-change in how hand hygiene is promoted, enabled and mainstreamed throughout the whole of society and across the globe. It aims to bring together multiple sectors around a common platform to coordinate voices and actions and, crucially, to align these behind national hand hygiene strategies. The global framework for this Initiative will organise actors around four main areas: evidence and learning, multi-stakeholder engagement, investment and monitoring. UNICEF and WHO will be supported by a select group of core partners, including but not limited to World Bank, Sanitation and Water for All, International Federation of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine/Hygiene Hub, International Labour Organization, United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), Global Handwashing Partnership and WaterAid. If you have any questions, contact Michael Emerson Gnilo megnilo@unicef.org and Maggie Montgomery MontgomeryM@who.int.

In late 2019, an acute respiratory disease, known as COVID-19, emerged. WHO has published a number of technical guidance documents here. This WHO technical guidance specifically summarizes guidance on water, sanitation and health care waste in particular for water and sanitation practitioners and providers. It will be of interest to others.

Behavioural Determinants of HandWashing and Glove Recontamination before Aseptic Procedures at Birth. A Time-and-Motion Study and Survey inZanzibar Labour Wards  

CATCH-IT is an Ethiopian initiative designed to improve quality of care, timely access to basic services and revitalisation of hospital reform initiatives for institutional transformation.

Infections acquired during labour and delivery are a significant cause of maternal and child morbidity and mortality. Adherence to hand hygiene protocols is a critical component of infection prevention strategies, but few studies have closely examined the hand hygiene of health care providers with sufficient detail to understand infection risks and prioritize prevention strategies. : This observational study was conducted in six healthcare facilities in Nigeria. In each, five women were observed from the onset of labour through to delivery of the placenta. Hand hygiene infection risk was estimated for all procedures requiring aseptic technique compared against adherence to proper hand hygiene protocol and potential recontamination events. This study highlights that hand hygiene remains a barrier to delivering high-quality and safe care in health facilities. Improving hygiene practices during labour and delivery will require strategies that extend beyond infrastructure provision.

Launched to coincide with World Antibiotic Awareness Week (WAAW) 2019, this evidence- and expert consensus-based document provides the minimum requirements for building strong and effective IPC programmes at the national and facility level. They should be in place for all countries and health care facilities to support further progress towards full implementation of all recommendations on the WHO core components of IPC programmes.

Example twitter messages for anyone to use during World Antibiotic Awareness Week and on World Toilet Day - join us to make sure we speak in one voice about committing to and improving water, sanitation and hygiene in health care facilities