Hand hygiene – best practice

The contribution that good hand hygiene practice can make to the reduction of healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs) is well-known and widely acknowledged. However, anyone working in the UK dental profession will be aware of the recent and shocking case of a dentist whose woeful levels of hygiene and malpractice triggered the recall of 22,000 patients – the biggest NHS patient recall in history. The dentist singularly failed in their duty to maintain adequate infection control for patients and staff, including the fact that they did not change gloves between patients. The consequences of such poor malpractice are severe and as such, this dentist has now been struck off by the General Dental Council – too late, however, for the tens of thousands of people affected by this negligence.