One of the six international criteria for maintaining patient safety is to reduce the risk of hospital infections. Minimising infection risk is also one of FV’s top priorities and part of JCI international hospital standards for patient security. The infection rate at FV hospital is controlled at less than 0.5 per cent, the same rate as hospitals in the US and 20 times lower than at other hospitals in Vietnam.

To ensure such a criterion is met, FV has a team of doctors and nurses responsible for managing infection in the hospital: the Infection Control Squad (ICS). Their responsibility is to provide maximum protection to everyone at FV, including staff, visitors and patients, from infectious or contagious issues.

FV’S INFECTION CONTROL SQUAD

The current “squad” includes ICS Head Dr Vu Truong Son, a specialist in infectious diseases and tropical medicine, and two experienced nurses, Ms Nguyen Thi Thu Anh and Ms Pham Thi Giang Huong. Since the establishment of the hospital, ICS has worked to continuously monitor and evaluate possible infection risks.

If a patient who has travelled abroad suddenly has a high fever and is hospitalised at FV, in addition to instant examination and treatment from FV’s medical staff, ICS will also be present to evaluate the situation. If an infectious element is identified, the patient will be isolated for special treatment and to protect the community from infection. FV is one of the few hospitals in Vietnam with a standard isolation room (negative pressure room), fully equipped with advanced equipment.

Keeping in mind maxims such as “an injection can both save and harm people by potentially spreading infection” and “a doctor who forgets to wash his hands will ruin the whole operation”, the responsibility of FV’s ICS is to cast a giant net covering all hospital activities, from small things like proper needle disposal, to more wide-reaching issues such as hand hygiene and preventing the transmission of highly dangerous diseases which could spread beyond the hospital to the local and international community. All of the activities undertaken by ICS have the same purpose: to protect and save lives.

INFECTION MANAGEMENT FROM HAND HYGIENE

One process that has become a specialty at FV Hospital is hand hygiene. Visitors and patients regularly share that they are impressed with the instructions and handwashing tools present throughout the building and the visibility of the ICS squad members, who are always on-hand to remind people to wash their hands regularly and properly.

Every day, the squad visits each department  to scrutinize the handwashing activities of doctors, nurses, nurses, physiotherapists and all other members of staff. Detailed information is recorded in the table of employee information, noting the department, date, steps and hand washing times. As a result, hand hygiene has become a daily habit for every employee in the hospital.

The infection control procedure at FV is constantly evaluated to meet international standards. Every year, FV has high-level meetings to examine the current situation, evaluate possible risks and devise future infection control strategies.

Thanks to such careful preparation, Dr Vu Truong Son is very confident when welcoming JCI surveyors: “JCI can come to FV every day as the work of controlling infections to ensure patient safety is completed daily. Think of it like ensuring your house is clean every day in case you have guests drop in!”

FV Hospital’s second consecutive JCI certification, awarded in January 2019, evidences ICS’s efficacy.

FV Hospital’s Infection Control Squad: Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Anh, Dr. Vu Truong Son,
Ms. Pham Thi Giang Huong