Senior Portlaoise hospital nurse urges people not to 'go back to old habits'

A senior Portlaoise hospital nurse is urging Laois people to continue cleaning their hands in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

The Assistant Director of Nursing, Infection, Prevention and Control at Midland Regional Hospital Portlaoise, Michelle Bergin, made the comments during International Infection Prevention Week. 

According to Bergin, it "gives us the opportunity to highlight some of the key actions we can all take to reduce infection". 

She said, "We have all learnt the importance of reducing infection as we lived through the Covid-19 pandemic. The frontline of preventing healthcare associated infection is the skill and commitment of health and social care workers who deliver hands on care to the most vulnerable patients and clients in their homes, in residential settings and in hospitals. 

“We know that people tend to go back to their old habits when a crisis starts to get better so it is vitally important that we all understand that we need to keep focusing on hand hygiene. We need to get back to basics and I want to encourage people to continue to clean their hands.  Having sanitiser and access to hand washing facilities will make it easier for everyone to maintain their good hand hygiene habits.” 

Midland Regional Hospital Portlaoise marked International Infection Prevention Week with an information session highlighting the fundamentals of infection prevention to staff and public. 

Ways to keep safe include: 

• Keeping your hands clean 
• Staying home if you are unwell 
• Adhering to respiratory and cough etiquette 
• Keeping up to date with vaccines, including the annual flu vaccine 
• Being aware of how infection prevention and control can protect your families, patients and service users 

People are also encouraged to cough or sneeze into a tissue or elbow and stay at home if unwell. 

For more information about good hand hygiene, click here.