PAHO Chooses Costa Rica
For Pilot Program
The Pan-American Health
Organization (PAHO) has
chosen the Hospital
Nacional de Niños
(Children's Hospital)
for its pilot program,
hoping to implement it
in other Latin American
countries if the Costa
Rican program is
successful.
The program focuses on
training health care
workers who have close
contact with patients to
wash their hands
frequently and use a
alcohol based sterilizer
to prevent the spread of
infections.
The program was launched
yesterday, attended by
medical and
administration officials
of the Children's
hospital, PAHO
representatives and
Costa Rican
vice-president, Laura
Chinchilla.
Although the PAHO has
chosen the Hospital Nacional de Niños,
all hospital workers of
the Caja
Costarricense de Seguro
Social (CCSS) will learn
to wash their hands
correctly. Even though
on can suppose that
medical staff take care
in that area, CCSS
officials recognize that
is not always the case.
Orlando Urroz Torres,
coordinator of the
Programa Nacional de
Seguridad del Paciente (PNSP),
said that correctly
washing of the hands can
reduce the spread of
infections in hospitals
by as much as 40%. |
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