Infection Prevention and Control: The Importance of Hygiene in Dialysis Care

Over the last two decades, significant improvements have been made in hand hygiene and infection prevention practices. Such improvements have contributed to reductions in MRSA associated bacteremia and clostridium difficile. These accomplishments were made possible through extensive educational efforts which highlight the importance of the “team approach” in infection prevention (Ross and Furrows. Rapid infection control nursing. Wiley, 2013). While significant improvements in infection control and prevention have contributed to global reductions in morbidity and mortality (Haley et al., Am J Epidemiol 121(2):182–205, 1985; Abdraboh et al., Am J Med Med Sci 6(1):7–15, 2016), events of the last decade have highlighted significant gaps in infection prevention and control programs. In the dialysis setting, infection prevention and hygiene practices become even more crucial because disease status and treatment regime requirements make patients more susceptible to infection. Comprehensive understanding of infection control and prevention in the dialysis setting will serve to significantly reduce morbidity and mortality for dialysis patients.