Over the last year, the group Clean Hospitals has developed from an idea to a maturing international collaboration, focusing on improving hospital environmental hygiene in the context of patient safety.

The healthcare industry is facing a number of new challenges, including the rise in antimicrobial resistance, an ageing patient population in most parts of the world, and the increasing costs associated with healthcare.

The hospital environment is an important source of pathogen transmission. Investing in infection prevention and control, including the hospital environment, is one of the most cost-effective ways for hospitals to prevent extra expenditures due to healthcare-associated infections.

Preventing an infection is always cheaper than treating one. And not only does preventing infections save money, but it improves patient outcomes and experience, and reduces antibiotic consumption – lowering the antimicrobial pressure in the hospital environment contributing to the containment of antimicrobial resistance. Although a safe and clean hospital environment is crucial for preventing healthcare-associated infections; it is often ignored, underfunded, and understudied. Available products, technologies, and practices vary widely in quality and effectiveness.

Clean Hospitals aims to bring clinical and academic experts together to address the gaps present both in the knowledge in the field and in everyday practice, and raise both the visibility and quality of hospital environmental hygiene worldwide.

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