Better work ethic at hospitals cuts infections

AHMEDABAD: Improved work culture can bring down infection rates in hospitals, says a study by the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, (IIM-A). The study was carried out in six hospitals of Gujarat and factors like infection-control practices, human resource management, infrastructure, supplies and associated health-system factors were investigated.
The researchers collected data on post-partum (after childbirth) infections from 8,124 women who had given birth in the six hospitals - two government and four private. Gujarat was chosen as the sample because, according to the study, it has a higher proportion of women going to hospital for births at 55%, compared to the national average of 40%.
Based on the need to improve the standard infection-control practices, such as disinfecting labour rooms, in health facilities offering childbirth services, the researchers chose to implement a process called 'Appreciative Inquiry' (AI) - an organizational change that would help reduce rates of infection after childbirth. Three to six months after the intervention, 31 in-depth interviews were conducted to reach the conclusion that the process helps in reducing infections in hospitals.
The study - Prevention of Postpartum Infections Using 'Appreciative Inquiry' was carried out by Bharati Sharma from the Centre for Management of Health Services at IIM-A, Prof K V Ramani from IIM-A, Dileep Mavalankar, director of Indian Institute of Public Health in Gandhinagar, Lovney Kanguru, research assistant from the University of Aberdeen, and Julia Hussein, senior clinical research fellow from the University of Aberdeen.
The study found evidence that AI improved infection control practices such as hand-washing, cleaning and the use of various supplies and schedules, which started from labour room and spilled over to other sections in the hospital. There was a perception that staff knowledge improved through meetings and discussions of infection cases. Staff members narrated positive stories and looked at what worked well in their hospitals, allowing them to see their organization and colleagues with new insights. For the two government hospitals, it was a rare occasion when entire staff came together for discussion.
"An unexpected effect of the intervention study was that one hospital took on the follow-up of post-partum women through telephone, a process which was used by the researchers to collect data from women after their discharge from hospital," says the study - Prevention of Postpartum Infections Using 'Appreciative Inquiry' by Bharati Sharma from the Centre for Management of Health Services at IIM-A, Prof K V Ramani from IIM-A, Dileep Mavalankar, director of Indian Institute of Public Health in Gandhinagar, Lovney Kanguru, research assistant from the University of Aberdeen, and Julia Hussein, senior clinical research fellow from the University of Aberdeen.