March 18, 2005

"CalStat spy" named Champion of Champions

Teresa Hartman, RN, who is the hand hygiene champion for the Yawkey Eight Cancer Center Outpatient Infusion Unit, is affectionately known as the "CalStat spy"on her floor. That is the moniker she uses in the clever e-mails she sends to her colleagues to remind them to use CalStat before and after patient contact and to acknowledge and reward staff members for using CalStat. Past e-mails have featured the "Blake 2 Cabana" written to the tune of "Copacabana," a message referring to the recent presidential election and the CalStat Christmas carol. Because of this creativity, Hartman was named the Hand Hygiene Champion of Champions March 9 at a special luncheon for all champions. "Hartman has used her wit, creativity and example to make hand hygiene second nature, as well as fun for everyone on the floor," said Helen Brandt, RN, a colleague who nominated Hartman. Honorable mention honors were given to Brenda Eklund, RN, of Blake 12, and Beth Rooney, team leader of Blake 13 and 14. Brit Nicholson, MD, MGH chief medical officer, attended the luncheon and presented the awards.

In addition to the accolades, the luncheon provided an overview of the first year of the Clean Sweepstakes program — a friendly competition among patient care units to encourage all MGHers to use CalStat to help reduce the rates of hospital-acquired infections and improve patient care. The hospital's compliance rate of hand hygiene has increased for both before and after patient contact and hospital-acquired infection rates are decreasing.

"This luncheon is to celebrate the hard work and dedication of the hand hygiene champions for making this program a success and raising awareness about hand hygiene compliance," said Rosemary O'Malley, RN, of the STOP — Stop the Transmission of Pathogens — task force.

Front row, from left, Rooney, Hartman and Eklund, with STOP task force members