Background
Hospitalized patients on isolation precautions are reported to have less frequent
health care provider (HCP) visits owing to time required to don and doff personal
protective equipment (PPE). Thus, placement on isolation precautions leads to negative
patient perception and affects their care.
Methods
A “Red Box” that extended 3 feet beyond the door was marked in 50 patient rooms of
a tertiary care hospital and used for patient communication by HCPs without PPE. HCP
and patient perceptions of the Red Box were studied via a survey and personal interviews.
Compliance was also observed by “secret shoppers.” Rates of health care–associated
infections (HAIs) were monitored.
Results
Over a 1-year period, HCPs reported improved patient communication, utilization of
time, and increased interactions. HCPs used the Red Box to communicate with patients
76% of the time. In 92% of the cases, HCPs remembered not to use PPE while in the
Red Box and were observed 80% of the time using PPE when venturing beyond the Red
Box. Patients reported improved frequency of HCP contact and satisfaction. HAIs in
these units did not show any increase compared with those in prior years.
Conclusions
HCP interaction and communication with patients on isolation precautions improved
with the reengineering of the patient environment in the form of the Red Box. HAI
rates did not increase with this intervention.
Key Words
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Article Info
Publication History
Published online: November 07, 2018
Footnotes
Previous presentation: Partial data from this study was presented in abstract form at the Infectious Diseases Society of America Annual Meeting, 2017 (Poster #422).
Conflicts of interest: None to report.
Identification
Copyright
© 2018 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
