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NEST Best

Methylation Station

 

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Membership level
2020-2021 Team
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Team Name
NEST Best
Project Title
Methylation Station
Design Challenge
Currently, many hospitals in both developed and developing countries face the risk of hospital-acquired infections (HAI), which affect up to 50% of patients in intensive care units (ICUs). Neonates are at an especially high risk of developing HAIs, which are responsible for 39% of neonatal deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa. Although there are many factors that could lead to the spread of HAI, the World Health Organization indicates that the main cause is improper hand hygiene within hospitals. In low-resource settings, hospital wards are often overcrowded and understaffed. The issues these wards face negatively impact health-care workers’ ability to maintain proper hand hygiene practices, especially when the needed materials are not co-located at care delivery sites. Due to COVID-19, the risk of infection transmission has increased substantially and so has the importance of proper hand hygiene. Many hospitals in low resource settings currently place old soap bottles throughout the ward; however, these bottles are subject to being relocated and can serve as an additional vector for disease transmission. Additionally, COVID-19 has put significant pressure on the already fragile supply chain, making access to hand hygiene materials more difficult than they had been previously. A solution that co-locates these bottles using readily available materials and allows them to be dispensed in a hands-free manner is needed.
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