(from left to right) CNC Health Care Assistant instructors Joleen Warmerdam, Jocelyn Bergeron, and Trudy Baker. Photo Courtesy, CNC

By Veronica Beltran

hand washing campaign

CNC Health Care Assistant students participate in hand washing campaign at long term care homes

May 28, 2020 | 4:00 AM

PRINCE GEORGE—The Prince George Health Services Hand Hygiene Campaign received a clean, and helping hand from 28 College of new Caledonia (CNC) Health Care Assistant (HCA) students.

The Campaign strived to increase awareness of the importance of hand washing to prevent the transmission of micro-organisms, amongst staff, physicians, patients, and families at long term care homes.

CNC students provided 215 hand hygiene in-services at long-term care facilities between March 3 to April 16.

HCA instructor, Jocelyn Bergeron, incentivized her students to take part in the campaign by offering it as an alternative to an upcoming American Psychological Association research paper.

“Students could still write the research paper if they preferred. But every single student chose to participate, including seven in Mackenzie.”—Jocelyn Bergeron, HCA instructor

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At times HCA students would be responsible for engaging up to 30 residents in hand-washing at a time. Throughout the campaign, students also filled out tracking sheets after each in-service, which Woods said provides valuable information for future hand hygiene campaigns.

Lead for Prince George Health Services, Debra Woods, who was tasked with putting the hand washing in-services together, says that after this campaign they now have an idea of what it takes to make the campaign work with residents living with dementia.