Hand hygiene at four Atlanta hospitals improved substantially over nearly two years, and the rate at which drug-resistant organisms were detected in patients did not change in tandem. Researchers led by Emory University School of Medicine reported the null finding this week in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology.
The headline invites a conclusion the study does not support. This is not evidence that hand hygiene fails to prevent infection. It is a measurement problem wrapped around a real question, and the authors say so directly, writing that "an absence of proof does not negate the importance of hand hygiene."
