Instructional Methods and Performance Assessments of Hand Hygiene Techniques

Nova Southeastern University, Davie, Florida, USA

Objective. To review various hand hygiene procedures and explore advances in measurement techniques that can provide insight into teaching and assessment methods to guide best practices for sterile compounding. Background. Hand hygiene procedures are important measures taken to minimize contamination from pathogens and keep compounded medications sterile when prepared in pharmacy cleanroom settings. However, various handwashing methods from the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) and World Health Organization (WHO) do not provide exact instructions and offer no guidance on methods of assessing skill. This has raised questions as to the effectiveness of different teaching methods and learner assessment. Moreover, modern strategies and tools for evaluating effectiveness of hand hygiene methods is sought. Methods. A comprehensive review of the relevant literature will be conducted using online research databases. Study outcomes of the learning strategies and assessment instruments will be recorded to determine the most reliable combination for learning and evaluating hand hygiene performance. Results. The results of this study will have direct implications that can optimize pharmacy student learning and demonstrate knowledge of theoretical principles and skills for sterile compounding. Additionally, effective assessment methods further permit the capability of evaluating the effectiveness of different published standards of hand hygiene practices. Conclusion. Due to the risks associated with touch contamination, training and testing of hand hygiene practices should be visually observed and further assessed using modern instruments. These methods must be reliable and allow proper documentation to be practical for educational environments and workplace clinical practices. Grants. None.