Collaborative UK conference brings experts together in the fight for improved patient safety

Operating room (OR) nurses, OR practitioners, infection prevention and control nurses and senior healthcare managers all found common ground at a recent meeting in London, England celebrating OneTogether: The Power of Small Actions.  The OneTogether programme is a global initiative  ignited  by 3M’s Infection Prevention Division in partnership with leading professional associations aimed at improving patient safety by reducing preventable healthcare-associated infections (HAIs).  

During the  meeting, representatives from the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), Association for Perioperative Practice (AfPP), Infection Prevention Society (IPS) and College of Operating Department Practitioners (CODP), 3M Infection Prevention Division, and 80 delegates from facilities across the U.K. developed a framework for driving a reduction in preventable HAIs, with an initial focus on improving outcomes in perioperative practice and developing a national toolkit.

Although the global healthcare community is making progress in reducing the occurrence of HAIs, it is estimated that HAIs cost the NHS at least £1bn annually and cause at least 5000 deaths. The OneTogether programme is designed to amplify individual actions, support collaborative opportunities and engage a network of professionals working toward the same goal.

Opening the conference, managing director Paul Keel, said: “Unlike other conditions, many HAIs are thought to be preventable and are something we can control by using practices and procedures that have been around for years. The challenge of the OneTogether programme is to introduce a common understanding of the issues by engaging and connecting with healthcare professionals and government institutions and leveraging and cascading expertise to improve patient outcomes.”

The conference included a motivational coaching session and keynote speakers from the Infection Prevention Society and the Royal College of Nursing, as well as three workshops giving delegates the chance to explore a wide range of procedures designed to reduce the risk of infection.

In her session, Jennie Wilson, board member of IPS, said: “A lot has been written about surgical site infections, yet there remains a lack of data on the risks of surgical site infection for most types of surgery and there is no national programme in place.  These infections can double the length of stay in hospital for every type of surgery, increase the cost of care by up to four times and increase the risk of death by seven times.  This is a unique chance to use the expertise of the four organizations to battle these statistics. ” 

Feedback from delegates was extremely positive, with the vast majority saying that they intended to apply the skills and knowledge they learned and were inspired to take action.    

The OneTogether initiative seeks to empower healthcare professionals to bring sustained behaviors to their organizations and elevate the infection prevention conversation within the broader healthcare community.   Healthcare providers and Professional organizations interested in joining the OneTogether movement can learn more by visiting www.joinonetogether.org.

About 3M Infection Prevention
3M Infection Prevention Division is truly on a mission to help reduce healthcare-associated infections through its infection prevention solutions. With its system of people, products and processes, 3M remains a trusted partner committed to helping hospitals reduce the risk of infections, improve patient outcomes and control their bottom lines. Learn more at www.3m.com/infectionprevention.

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