Toronto Grace Health Centre

Patients & Visitor Information

Infection Control

OUR COMMITMENT TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY

The dedicated staff at Toronto Grace are committed to providing the highest quality care for our patients, families and community in a safe and healthy environment.

Patient safety is an important priority at Toronto Grace.
We have many activities in place to help prevent and control infections.

At the Grace, our patients health is our priority and maintaining proper infection control is crucial to patient care. Frequent hand washing is necessary for all staff, patients, and visitors to safeguard against infection. Hand-santizing dispensers are located beside the elevators on the main floor and throughout the facility. Please use the hand sanitzers when entering the health centre, when leaving, and after assisting with any care activities. If extra precautions are required, a sign will be posted on the patients door. In cases of outbreaks, there will be communications posted throughout the health centre.

Toronto Grace Health Centre Infection Rates
Click on the following links to view the Grace infection rate

Hand Hygiene
C.Diff Rates
MRSA
VRE

Hand Hygiene

TGHC Hand Hygience brochure for Patients and Families

Method for Gathering Hygiene Compliance
All hospitals were required to collect a minimum of 200 observations for every 100 hospital beds. Direct observation of hand hygiene was completed at all hospitals, including TGHC, by trained observers using a standard provincial audit tool. Here is how it was calculated

# of times hand hygiene performed
------------------------------------------------------------------ x 100
# of observed hand hygiene indications

The observations were on the Four Moments for Hand Hygiene

Toronto Grace Hand Hygiene Compliance Rate 2010

Before Initial patient/patient environmental contact	Before aseptic Procedure	After body fluid exposure risk	After patient/patient environ mental contact
71%	90%	84%	87%

What is Hand Hygiene?

- Hand hygiene is using sanitizer or washing with soap and water.

- Hand cleaning is something we all do, but we need to do better - at the right time and the right way.

- Every patient has the right to ask their care provider if they have washed their hands.

Why is Hand Hygiene So Important?

- Hand hygiene is a safety practice that belongs to EVERYONE in the hospital including patients, families, visitors and the care team.
- Good hand washing is the most successful way to reduce and prevent healthcare-associated infections.

What are Healthcare-associated Infections?

- Sometimes when patients are admitted to hospitals they get an infection. These infections are called healthcare-associated infections

When Should I Wash/Sanitize My Hands
- Sanitize/wash your hands before you enter the hospital, at the front door.
- Sanitize/wash your hands before entering a patient?s room.
- Sanitize/wash your hands after you leave a patient?s room.
- Sanitize/wash your hands when leaving the hospital.

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C. Difficile Rates*

What is C-difficile?

Clostridium Difficile (C. difficile) is just one of the many types of bacteria that can be found in the environment and the intestines. For most people, it does not pose a health risk. However, C. difficile associated disease (CDAD) can sometimes occur when antibiotics are prescribed. Antibiotics work by killing off bacteria the bad bacteria but also good bacteria. This can allow the C. difficile bacteria to multiply, which may cause diarrhea and can damage the bowel.

Click here for information on C. difficile.

Number of new c-diff cases at the Toronto Grace Health Centre

	June 2011	July 2011	Aug 2011	Sep 2011	Oct 2011	Nov 2011	Dec 2011
No of New C-diff Cases	0	0	<5	0	1	1	0
Rates per 1000 patient days	0	0	0.60	0	0.30	0.31	0

* The C. difficile infection rate is calculated as a rate per 1,000 patient days. Patient number of days during which services were provided to all inpatients during the month.

The rate is calculated by the following formula:

The number fo new hospital acquired cases of c.difficile at the Grace
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The total number of patient days ( for one month )

What is MRSA?

Staphylococcus aureus is a germ that lives on the skin and mucous membranes of healthy people. Occasionally, S. aureus can cause an infection. When S. aureus develops resistance to certain antibiotics, it is called Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus, also referred to as MRSA.

What is MRSA bacteraemia?
MRSA Bacteraemia is the presence of the MRSA bacteria in the blood stream and is referred to as the blood stream infection.

What is Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE)?
Enterococci are a type of bacteria normally present in the human intestine and in the environment. These bacteria can sometimes cause infections. Vancomycin is an antibiotic that is often used to treat infections caused by enterococci. In some instances, enterococci have become resistant to this drug and thus are called Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococci (VRE). VRE is spread from one person to another through direct contact. Hand hygiene is the most effective way to prevent VRE.

VRE can be present on the caregiver's hands either from touching contaminated material excreted by an infected person or from touching articles soiled by feces. VRE can survive on hands and can survive for weeks on inanimate objects such as toilet seats, taps, door handles, bedrails, furniture and bedpans. VRE is easy to kill with the proper use of disinfectants and good hand hygiene.

VRE Bacteraemia is the presence of the VRE bacteria in the blood stream and is referred to as the blood stream infection.

	Apr 2011	May 2011	Jun 2011	Jul 2011	Aug 2011	Sep 2011	Oct 2011	Nov 2011	Dec 2011
Number of MRSA	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Rate	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Number of VRE	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Rate	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

To learn more about hospital infection control rates, please visit the Ministry and Long Term Care website.