Going to See Your Doctor May Actually Make You Sicker, Says DoctorSolve

Physicians' lack of proper hand washing hygiene is an infectious issue across many U.S. clinics and hospitals.

Vancouver, B.C. (PRWEB) January 16, 2007 -- For almost 150 years, healthcare professionals have known that viruses can be spread through touch and the best prevention is to wash their hands after seeing each patient. However, many of them are skipping the soap and water, contributing to their patients' illnesses. An estimated 103,000 patients die every year due to poor hygiene and one in 20 contracts an infectious disease during a hospital stay.    

Various studies have been conducted on the amount of times physicians wash their hands during work. Most studies show that 40 -- 60 per cent of all doctors and nurses fail to wash their hands between visits with patients. Results concerning intensive care units were even lower, reaching just below 40 per cent.

At the very least, hands should be washed after every cough or sneeze and every time you shake someone's hand

Doctors believe that by wearing gloves they are taking adequate precautions and helping to keep patients healthy

Although wearing gloves does offer protection against illness, it does little to avoid contamination to the patient due to unwashed hands touching the outside of gloves when they are being put on.

Touching these materials becomes such an automatic response that physicians may not realize to wash their hands afterwards

If you do not see your doctor wash their hands, ask him or her to please do so. Remember you're there to get relief from an illness or health problem, and his or her primary concern is to help you do that

According to Zickler, there are a number of reasons why healthcare professionals are not exercising proper hand hygiene. "A busy workload, the location of washing facilities, allergy concerns with soap solutions, and a lack of leadership from senior staff are all reasons why many doctors aren't practicing adequate sanitization procedures. Not only are doctors not following handwashing methods, they are carrying infectious agents and passing them on to their patients. It is a major problem, especially around the flu season," says Zickler.

"Doctors believe that by wearing gloves they are taking adequate precautions and helping to keep patients healthy," says Zickler. "Although wearing gloves does offer protection against illness, it does little to avoid contamination to the patient due to unwashed hands touching the outside of gloves when they are being put on."

In addition, doctors are carrying infectious agents in other ways. Stethoscopes, medical scissors, keyboards and pagers are all common surfaces where bacteria can be found and potentially cause infection to patients. A study showed that 12% of pagers tested carried bacteria capable of pneumonia, staph infections or other hospital-acquired infections. "Touching these materials becomes such an automatic response that physicians may not realize to wash their hands afterwards," says Zickler.

The American Journal of Infection Control even goes so far as to suggest that hospitals are continuing improper hygiene to avoid economic consequences. A decrease in infected patients translates into a decrease in revenue.

So how can hospitals get doctors to stay squeaky clean? A study found that when doctors were monitored on how many times they took a trip to the sink, the results were as high as 57 per cent. Pocket-sized hand wipes and hand solutions are also effective because they do not require a sink.

In addition, patients can protect themselves by asking a simple question. "If you do not see your doctor wash their hands, ask him or her to please do so. Remember you're there to get relief from an illness or health problem, and his or her primary concern is to help you do that," says Zickler.

DoctorSolve, a Canadian Internet-based pharmacy intermediary (license #BC Q37) offers lower cost, long-term prescriptions. A professionally registered pharmacist fills all prescriptions. A certified member of the Canadian International Pharmacy Association, DoctorSolve is ranked one of the best online pharmacies by PharmacyChecker.com. DoctorSolve has filled more than 200,000 U.S prescriptions.

For more information, call 1-866-732-0305, listen to our podcast at http://www.doctorsolve.com/podcast or visit http://www.doctorsolve.com.

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