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ROSWELL, Ga., July 25, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Kimberly-Clark today announced the recipients of the third annual HAI WATCHDOG Awards, recognizing the efforts of healthcare professionals working together to prevent healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) through staff and patient education and use of best practices.

HAIs are the most frequent adverse event in healthcare worldwide, affecting hundreds of millions of patients each year.ⁱ HAIs cost more Americans their lives than breast cancer and HIV/AIDS combined, accounting for nearly 99,000 deaths annually.ⁱⁱ Many of these infections are preventable.

"HAI prevention is a facility-wide initiative requiring engagement from all departments, personnel and disciplines," said Joanne Bauer, President, Kimberly-Clark Health Care. "In its third year, Kimberly-Clark expanded the HAI WATCHDOG Awards program to include an environmental services initiative to recognize the critical role that frontline environmental services staff play in the healthcare environment. With this addition, we provide a unique platform for the sharing of infection prevention best practices from all corners of the hospital."    

The panel-judged entries were reviewed by healthcare professionals with expertise in infection prevention and evaluated based on innovation and impact of program results. The clinician's choice category recognizes education and awareness programs with non-measureable results and the winner was selected by online public voting of fellow healthcare professionals.

"Clinicians across the U.S. and throughout the world work hard to prevent HAIs on a daily basis. The HAI WATCHDOG Awards program recognizes those champions who go above and beyond to document and share their strategies for success," said Dr. William Jarvis, former Director of the Office of Extramural Research at the CDC's National Center for Infectious Diseases. "This year's recipients symbolize the best in new ideas around HAI prevention. As a judge, I am thrilled to see the continued pursuit of best practices and am hopeful for a future with greater awareness around HAI prevention."

HAI WATCHDOG Awards Recipients

Panel-Judged Entries

Patient HAI Education Initiative:

• Huntsville Hospital, Huntsville, Ala. – In an effort to reduce overall infection rates at the facility, Huntsville Hospital set out to increase hand hygiene compliance, which was at 42 percent. The hospital launched an education program for both its clinicians and patients, resulting in an increase in its hand hygiene compliance rate to 87.5 percent.    

Environmental Services:

• NYU Langone Medical Center, New York, N.Y. – Faced with the challenge of reducing the rate of Clostridium difficile (C. diff.) cases in the facility, NYU Langone Medical Center enhanced the cleaning of frequently touched surfaces in the patient zone. As a result, the C. diff rates decreased significantly, and the building service department received funding to add additional staff to the program.

Fewer Than 300 Beds:

• Christiana Care Health System's Wilmington Hospital, Wilmington, Del. – Leadership engaged frontline staff in a comprehensive unit based safety program in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Wilmington Hospital, which resulted in zero central line-associative bloodstream infections in the ICU since implementation in 2011.

More Than 300 Beds:

• UC Davis Medical Center, Sacramento, Calif. – Recognizing that Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia (VAP) rates in its ICU prolonged patient stays and increased costs per patient, UC Davis Medical Center formed a team to reduce VAP rates in its unit. Within one year, the facility decreased its VAP rate, with four ICUs reporting zero incidences of VAP. Overall, the team was able to enhance the safety and quality of patient care, and improved staff accountability and engagement.

Healthcare System:

• Christiana Care Health System, Wilmington, Del. – Determined to eliminate HAIs in both of Christiana Care's hospitals, leadership at Christiana Care Health System engaged all of its employees, patients and the community in a multi-pronged approach to address prevention, education, consistent application of best practices and transparency of results. As a result, hand hygiene compliance rates exceeded 90 percent, VAP rates in the ICUs decreased by more than 80 percent, and overall hospital infection rates dropped more than 50 percent.

Honorable Mentions

• Methodist Willowbrook Hospital, Houston, Texas, "Chasing Zero: Reducing Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia in the Intensive Care Unit."
• Lakeridge Health Oshawa, Oshawa, Ontario, "Clostridium Difficile Toolkit: From Outbreak to Lunch Break."
• Georgia Regents Medical Center, Augusta, Ga., "Asepsis Program: A Simulation Laboratory Program to Teach Asepsis and Infection Prevention to Medical Students and Residents."

Clinician's Choice

• Specialty Hospital Washington, Hadley Campus, Washington, D.C., "SHW Hadley Infection Control Committee."

Kimberly-Clark awarded an educational grant to the healthcare facilities who received first place in each category in each region. The Australia and New Zealand programs are open for submissions until Sept. 30, 2013. Winners of the U.K., Australia and New Zealand HAI WATCHDOG Awards will be announced later this year.

The fourth annual HAI WATCHDOG Awards will begin accepting submissions in October 2013. For more information, please visit www.haiwatchdog.com or facebook.com/haiwatchdog.

About the HAI WATCHDOG Community
The HAI WATCHDOG Community is an online forum for sharing infection prevention best practices. Healthcare professionals can join the HAI WATCHDOG Community to not only share experiences, but gather insight into other successful infection prevention programs around the country. In addition, clinicians have access to tools and resources, such as customizable posters, to educate and reinforce the importance of HAI prevention with staff.

About Kimberly-Clark
Kimberly-Clark Corp. (NYSE: KMB) and its well-known global brands are an indispensable part of life for people in more than 175 countries. Every day, nearly a quarter of the world's population trust K-C's brands and the solutions they provide to enhance their health, hygiene and well-being. With brands such as Kleenex, Scott, Huggies, Pull-Ups, Kotex and Depend, Kimberly-Clark holds the No. 1 or No. 2 share position in more than 80 countries. To keep up with the latest K-C news and to learn more about the Company's 141-year history of innovation, visit www.kimberly-clark.com or follow us on Facebook or Twitter.  

Kimberly-Clark in the Healthcare Environment
Around the world, medical professionals turn to Kimberly-Clark for a wide portfolio of solutions that improve the health, hygiene and well-being of their patients and staff. As part of their healing mission, caregivers rely on Kimberly-Clark to deliver clinical solutions, hygiene & cleaning offerings, and educational resources that they can depend on to prevent, diagnose and manage a wide variety of healthcare-associated infections. A global enterprise of more than $1 billion, Kimberly-Clark Health Care holds the No. 1 or No. 2 market share position in several categories, including infection control solutions, surgical solutions, pain management, hygiene solutions, digestive health and respiratory health. And throughout the care continuum, patients and staff alike trust Kimberly-Clark medical supplies and devices, KLEENEX tissues, KLEENEX & SCOTT skin care products and SCOTT towels for day-to-day needs. For more information, visit http://www.kchealthcare.com and http://www.kcprofessional.com.

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SOURCE Kimberly-Clark Corp.