SARAYA - Kenya - News

SARAYA India Participated in 20th Medical Fair India, Being Held at Mumbai From March 14 - 16, 2014

2014-04-01T00:05:46+00:00

Saraya India showcased its product into Healthcare hygiene and Food sanitation along with "No touch" dispenser which attracted the chief guest of the event Dr.S. Narayani ( Fortis Hospital Mulund -Head of Medical Services ). she appreciated GUD1000 BT Dispenser as it helps in preventing cross-contamination of the microorganism in the healthcare settings and we were grateful to share details of other products like Hand Soap, Sanitizer, Antibacterial floor cleaner to her. We also received an overwhelming response from all the visitors from Healthcare settings, Food Industries and Distributors. This Medical Fair is the India`s number one trade for Hospitals, Healthcare centers and Clinics. Development report shows that rising incomes and growing literacy are likely to drive higher per capita expenditure on healthcare. An estimate suggests that by 2017 healthcare spending could contribute 9% of GDP and employ around 10 million people.

We thank every visitor from Hospital, Diagnostic center, Food Industry and distributor for showing interest in our products.

SARAYA Hygiene Malaysia participated in the 4th Borneo Infection Control Congress (BICC)

2014-05-27T00:12:54+00:00

Saraya Hygiene Malaysia was proud to join the 4th Borneo Infection Control Congress (BICC) held on May 15th and 16th in Kuching, Malaysia. Every two years the BICC is held on the island of Borneo in East Malaysia. This was the first year the congress was held in Kuching, Sarawak.

The BICC attracts participants from all over Malaysia, making it the most anticipated and active infection control conferences in Malaysia with a large community dedicated to learning and practicing the latest in patient safety and infection control.

The BICC is famous for bringing premiere speakers from all over Asia. This year participants were able to attend presentations by Prof. Seto, Prof. Patrica Ching, Prof. Ling Moi Ling and Professor Didier Pittet from Geneva University Hospital.

This year was especially exciting due to the release of "Clean Hands Save Lives" by Thierry Crouzet. This book was written based on interviews with Professor Pittet and his experience bringing hand hygiene to the forefront of patient safety, changing healthcare culture and saving millions of lives.

Saraya sponsored a book signing by Professor Pittet, and was a highlight of the BICC, attracting hundreds of nurses and doctors to meet Professor Pittet.

Hospital related infections kill millions of patients each year while in hospital care. Professor Pittet's work is dedicated to improving patient safety around the world. Please read "Clean Hands Save Lives," which is available from Amazon and your favorite book store.

Participation in ACIPC 2014

2014-11-26T00:40:32+00:00

Saraya Australia Pty Ltd participated in the 3rd Australasian College for Infection Prevention and Control (ACIPC), held in Adelaide from November 24th through the 26th, 2014. Around 500 delegates attended the convention. Saraya Australia Pty Ltd. displayed its lineup of hand hygiene and sanitation products such as UD/MD-9000 hand hygiene dispensers, the all-new Sanilavo series of hygiene amenities, and the WS-3000BG no-touch hand hygiene system.

We are very proud to announce that among the 60 exhibitors, Saraya Australia won the Best Stand Award for small size stands at the ACIPC gala dinner. The stand was outstanding and we received a high evaluation from the participants. This was a great opportunity to reintroduce SARAYA to Australian health care participants, and we would like to thank all those who visited our booth.

Participation in Medica 2014

2014-12-01T00:53:40+00:00

With great pleasure, Saraya Europe participated in Medica 2014 in Germany held from the 12th to the 15th of November, presenting our new ADS-500/1000 Euro bottle dispenser for the German market. Medica is the world's largest medical trade show. For more than 40 years Medica has had the reputation of being firmly marked on every expert's calendar, and we are glad to participate every year. It is the best opportunity to showcase our range of products including the famous no-touch dispensers GUD-1000 and UD-9000 as well as the complete line up of the new Sanilavo washroom amenity series.

We would like to thank everyone for visiting our stand and we will be pleased to see you again soon!

Short Video Documentary

2014-12-31T08:28:52+00:00

SARAYA is pleased to introduce a short video documentary following Professor Didier Pittet from the University of Geneva and Yusuke Saraya, the president of Saraya Co., Ltd. recorded in Cambodia during the signing of the Clean Care is Safer Care pledge by the Ministry of Health. The Clean Care is Safer Care program was created by the WHO to reduce healthcare-associated infections in healthcare facilities in every country. There are many patients who develop infections while being treated in the hospital, and lack of hand hygiene is often the cause.

This happens not only in developing countries like Cambodia but also developed countries such as the UK and Japan. This documentary video will let you peek into the activity of spreading hand hygiene knowledge and practice by Professor Didier Pittet and Saraya Co., Ltd. We hope the video to be seen by many people and the importance of hand hygiene can be recognized by as many people as possible.

Complete version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUKSW2wzvqs
Short version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNYeFhAoTqM

SARAYA Supports the WHO's - SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands

2015-03-11T00:49:36+00:00

SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands is a healthcare campaign led by the WHO to promote hand hygiene to reduce infections in the hospital. Since 2010, Global Hand Hygiene Day has been celebrated on May 5th around the world to raise awareness and reinforce knowledge on hand hygiene.

This year's theme for the Global Hand Hygiene Day is "Strengthening Health-Care Systems and Delivery – Hand Hygiene is Your Entrance Door."

SARAYA, as a member of the Private Organizations for Patient Safety (POPS), supports the Global Hand Hygiene Day by providing promotional posters and other educational materials as well as local events. Please visit the WHO's campaign page and find out more about the SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands!

Visit Webpage: http://www.who.int/gpsc/5may/en/

The Opening of the 5 May Hand Hygiene Day 2015 Campaign Web page!

2015-04-22T00:45:31+00:00

SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands is a healthcare campaign led by the WHO to promote hand hygiene awareness to reduce infections in the hospital. Since 2010, Global Hand Hygiene Day has been celebrated on May 5th around the world to reinforce knowledge on hand hygiene and healthcare-associated infections. Saraya is celebrating this year with a special website. Many of our local offices around the world are supporting hospitals with their 5 May events. Take a look at the newly opened a campaign web page for information and educational tools such as posters and wallpapers to promote hand hygiene. You can also get an exclusive animated screen saver by taking a quiz related to hand hygiene!

Visit our campaign site and celebrate the 5 May Hand Hygiene Day with us!

Celebrate Patient Safety: SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands

2015-05-05T08:27:52+00:00

Saraya Co., Ltd. is proud to support the SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands campaign, which is celebrated yearly on May 5th. Those familiar to trends in healthcare hygiene and patient safety will know that May 5th is the official day of celebration and affirming commitment to patient safety through hand hygiene and the use of alcohol hand rub to prevent infections and the spread of pathogens in healthcare settings.

SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands is part of the larger program started in 2005, WHO Clean Care is Safer Care, pioneered by Professor Didier Pittet of the Geneva University Hospital in Switzerland. Clean Care is Safer Care was created as a foundation to cultivate a global understanding of the importance of patient safety and hand hygiene to reduce infections in the hospital. The project is dedicated to gaining the acknowledgment of governments in order to promote the development of patient safety policies and programs on the country level. Since the program began 10 years ago, hospitals in over 171 countries have committed to SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands.

Unclean practices and insufficient hand hygiene in hospitals account for unexpected treatment, extended stays and many deaths throughout developing and developed countries worldwide. In 2002, 99,000 deaths were attributed to healthcare-associated infections (1). The burden is great, but only until recently has the real effects of insufficient hand hygiene been understood. These numbers are climbing due to antibiotic-resistant organisms.

Since 2009, SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands has been celebrated annually on May 5th, represents the five fingers of both hands, or 5-5. This campaign is a ground-level initiative alongside the country-level Clean Care is Safer Care program, that enrolls the support and enthusiasm of healthcare workers around the world to generate awareness and support for reducing healthcare-associated infections. "System change" and creating a culture of awareness regarding hand hygiene are pillars of the SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands. This year the WHO is using social media to create awareness via photos posted by supporters displaying the phrase, "#safehands". Images of supporters can be viewed at http://www.cleanhandssavelives.org/safehands/pics.php.

Professor Pittet is also challenging hospitals to record their own attempt at beating the Guinness record-holding hand hygiene relay this year. Information can be found on Youtube as well as the Clean Care is Safer Care website. SARAYA, the leader in healthcare hygiene in Japan, is proud to support and publicize this year's May 5th SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands campaign, and our offices worldwide are excited to participate in May 5th activities at local hospitals. SARAYA'S website for May 5th is available at https://saraya.world/healthcare/pages/clean-your-hands-5-may for downloadable posters and a screensaver to support this year's activities.

As on of the WHO's initial members of the POPs committee, SARAYA is dedicated to the SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands, and the active role the group takes in bringing hand hygiene to developing countries. The goal of POPs is to create collaboration between businesses for the sustainable good of spreading knowledge and opportunities for hand hygiene to developing countries. President Yusuke Saraya of Saraya Co., Ltd. has kept this policy in the creed of the company. "The only way to achieve change and a sustainable society is through collaboration between businesses and the non-profit sector. POPs reflects this ideal, just as SARAYA believes this to be the basis for its CSR projects," said Yusuke Saraya while visiting Cambodia to witness the signing in of the Ministry of Health's pledge to become a supporting member of the SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands Campaign.

1. Stone PW, Braccia D, Larson E. Systematic review of economic analyses of healthcare-associated infections. American Journal of Infection Control, 2005, 33:501–509.

Participation at the ICPIC

2015-06-10T08:06:23+00:00

SARAYA is pleased to announce its participation at the 3rd International Conference on Prevention & Infection Control (ICPIC) to be held from 16 to 19 June 2015 in Geneva, Switzerland. We have been participating in ICPIC from the 1st year and been exchanging information and opinions with the world leaders of infection prevention and control. SARAYA is supporting the ICPIC from every aspect as a platinum supporter this year. You will see our IS-9000M stand with no-touch dispensers at the site keeping visitors' hands clean and hygienic.

For a closer look at our products, please visit us at booth No. 39-41. A wide range of products for infection prevention and control will be displayed at our booth including a newly developed Alsoft VB, the hand disinfectant which contains 2 kinds of alcohol as its active components and phosphoric acid to effectively work against a broad spectrum of microorganism and viruses. No-touch dispensers that to enforce the effect of hand disinfectant and more products for infection prevention and control will also be showcased.

We are looking forward to seeing you all at the ICPIC 2015!

Saraya CIS endoscope workshop at the Central Asian Gastroenterology Week

2015-10-21T00:03:21+00:00

Saraya together with Olympus participated in the International Congress "Central Asian Gastroenterological Week-2015," held on September 30th to October 3rd, 2015 in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

At the congress, Saraya and Olympus held a workshop on the reprocessing and disinfection of flexible endoscopes using Acecide and Endoquick products. During the master class, different issues regarding medical instrument HLD and sterilization were highlighted. The advantages of using peracetic acid over the use of aldehyde-based products were also discussed. In addition, special training on hand hygiene treatment was also conducted during the event. All participants got certificates of attendance.

This event highlighted the benefits of using Saraya peracetic acid-based chemistry. It was a good opportunity to introduce Saraya products for Kazakhstan customers, with many visitors at the congress showing an increased interest in Saraya medical products.

16th World Sterilization Congress

2015-10-26T00:05:50+00:00

Saraya participated in the 16th World Sterilization Congress, held in Lille, France from October 7th to the 10th, 2015.

This year the STERIACE plasma equipment sterilizer was debuted at the congress. The STERIACE features new technology that utilizes peracetic acid instead of hydrogen peroxide at the sterilizing agent. The device was presented to the congress by Professor Kobayashi, Honorary Chancellor from the Tokyo Healthcare University Postgraduate School. Though there were many challenges preparing for such a well-known event, and the first time exhibiting the STERIACE, we had a great turn out at the booth and were pleased to meet many visitors from several countries. Because of the World Sterilization Congress's reach customers, not only the European region but also American and Asian countries visited our booth. Many questions about STERIACE such as the difference between sterilization by peracetic acid and hydrogen peroxide were asked. In addition, our AR-40 Washer Disinfector was also popular due to its compact size that isn't normally found in European countries.

There are a lot of challenges for releasing this kind of products, however, this congress was a great opportunity to show our technology and understand to further improve. We would like to express our appreciation to all the visitors from the World Sterilization Congress.

Participation in Medica 2015!

2015-11-25T00:03:02+00:00

With great pleasure, SARAYA participated in Medica 2015 in Germany held from the 16th to the 19th of November. 130,000 specialist visitors from 120 nations came to Düsseldorf to see the world's biggest exhibition for medical products.

It was the best occasion to showcase our range of products such as our now-famous no-touch dispensers GUD-1000 and UD-9000, as well our Sanilavo complete line-up. We took this occasion to introduce our new system MedSense - a suite of communication solutions that support healthcare facilities in their efforts to efficiently deliver quality care by recording and reminding the use of hand hygiene in the patient care area. Our technology provides actionable insights that lead to a culture of continuous improvement and safety for hand hygiene, allowing hospitals to focus on what they do best: taking care of patients.

We would, therefore, like to thank everyone for visiting our stand and we would be pleased to see you again soon.

Join us at Medica 2016 in Germany

2016-11-08T00:25:51+00:00

Saraya will join the world's largest medical and healthcare-related exhibition in the world. Come join us at the latest in surgical instrument processing.

The Saraya booth is located at Hall 5, Row K-14.
This year we will be presenting our all-new high-level disinfectant as well as the best in Saraya hand hygiene and dispensers.
Join us on November 14-17.

SARAYA Joins Medica 2016 in Germany

2016-11-30T00:38:44+00:00

From 14 – 17 November, 130,000 specialists from all sectors of the health industry from around 120 nations came to Düsseldorf for Medica 2016, the world’s largest event for the medical sector.

It is the best occasion for Saraya Europe to showcase our range of products as our now famous No-touch dispensers that can be used in combination with our soaps and disinfectants as well as our Sanilavo complete line-up. Our drive for innovativeness, efficacy and stylish design throughout our whole range of products has prompted once again an absolutely positive response from our growing public during the four days of the event. Our technology provides actionable insights that lead to a culture of continuous improvement and safety for hand hygiene, allowing hospitals to focus on what they do best: taking care of patients.

We would, therefore, like to thank everyone for visiting our stand and we would be pleased to meet you again soon!

Participation at the ICPIC 2017

2017-07-05T00:15:15+00:00

From June 20th to the 23rd, SARAYA joined the 4th International Conference on Prevention & Infection Control (ICPIC), held in Geneva, Switzerland. ICPIC has become one of the foremost events for sharing research, knowledge and experiences in the prevention of healthcare-associated infection and control of antimicrobial resistance around the world. SARAYA has participated in this forum since the beginning of 2011.

During this year’s forum, we showcased our standard and newly developed products, such as hand sanitizers, no-touch dispensers, the Sanilavo series, the Power Quick series, the revolutionary Medsense monitoring system and other favorites. Visitors to the booth were able to sign and stick a hand-print to the booth in support of hand hygiene. Thank you to all the visitors and participants who came to our booth!

Newly opened hand hygiene websites!

2017-08-21T00:05:43+00:00

SARAYA has opened two new websites for its CSR initiatives in Uganda.

Wash A Million Hands! Project & 100% Hospital Hand Hygiene Project

For the Wash A Million Hands! Project, SARAYA has donated 1% of its sales of many household soaps and hand sanitizers to support the educational activities of UNICEF regarding hand washing. Since 2010, the Wash A Million Hands! Project has been able to reach millions of people, mainly mothers and children, with hand hygiene training. The 100% Hospital Hand Hygiene Project is a unique project where SARAYA has established a local manufacturing plant in Uganda to provide alcohol hand sanitizers to healthcare facilities in East Africa. The sanitizer is made from ingredients all made in Africa, and supports local businesses while preventing healthcare-associated infections in hospitals and clinics.

Please visit each website for more information!

Train the Trainers Program in Malaysia

2017-08-29T08:26:59+00:00

The very first Train the Trainer program in Malaysia was held in Kuching from August 15^th to the 17^th. This milestone project was fully supported by SARAYA and organized by the University of Geneva Hospitals, WHO Collaboration Center on Patient Safety with staff from Sarawak General Hospital and was endorsed by the Ministry of Health, Malaysia.

Over 80 Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) Practitioners and Healthcare Professionals from Malaysia and Singapore participated in the program.
The TTT program is an intense training course based on the WHO hand hygiene multimodal strategy, consisting of lectures, hands-on simulation, multimedia training, sharing experiences, and testing understanding. It is a unique approach to training ICP staff at the national/regional level for IPC experts, and the participants of the program are expected to lead the dissemination of the knowledge and the standardized hand hygiene training/activities to their countries/regions.

TTT program in Malaysia was the first to be held in Asia, following the experiences in Brazil, Spain, South Africa and Mexico, and was organized by Prof. Didier Pittet, Ms. Ermira Tartari, Ms. Carolina Fankhauser and Dr. Sarah Masson-Roy from the Infection Control Programme Team, University of Geneva Hospitals.

Dr. Suraya, Dr. Lee and Prof. Nordiah from MOH Malaysia, Prof. Pittet, Dr. Tartari, and Dr. Fankhauser from the University of Geneva Hospitals (HUG).

One of the highlights of this 3 day program was the role-playing simulation for 5 Moments identification training. Participants were divided into 7 groups and given detailed role-playing scenarios reflecting real situations of the patient care in the hospital. Participants played the roles of nurses, doctors, patients, paramedic and others according to the scenario. Each team tried to correctly identify the number of hand hygiene opportunities during the role-play. Because the patient care environment can be hectic, it is difficult to identify the correct timing for hand hygiene. This role-playing and interactive discussion session helped the participants better understand this skill. Being able to correctly identify hand hygiene opportunities is essential for calculating the compliance rate of a ward and contributes to better evaluations and feedback. Understanding the actual status of a hospital is essential to improvement.

Lectures by the University of Geneva Hospitals (HUG) team.

Dr. Masson-Roy from HUG and the participants reading the scenario for role-playing.

Preparing for the role-playing presentation and discussing hand hygiene opportunities.

Presentation of group role-playing, followed by the discussion with all participants.

On the last day, participants who successfully completed the program received a certificate.

TTT　program　bag　with　SARAYA　logo　design　and　Saraya　Goodmaid　Alsoft　A　hand disinfectant was　given to　all　participants.

HUG, MOH Malaysia and Saraya Goodmaid Team.

A short movie is available on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/RZ9OABnQIk8

Celebrate the International Infection Prevention Week, October 15-21

2017-10-11T00:01:45+00:00

The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC), who touts "365 days of commitment" to infection prevention is holding it's International Infection Prevention Week (IIPW). This event is "7 days of focus" every third week of October to raise awareness on the role infection prevention plays to improve patient safety. This is the first year SARAYA has supported IIPW with a social campaign.

The 2017 theme for International Infection Prevention Week is Antibiotic Resistance, and the APIC has made a great choice to voice their event with a memorable character and slogan.

Join your friends, family members, and healthcare professionals in celebrating International Infection Prevention Week (IIPW), October 15-21, 2017!

We're also sharing posters. You can share them any way you want to remind others to think seriously about infection prevention.

Download all our posters here.


Download here	Download here

Various activities and information are available from the APIC campaign site.
http://professionals.site.apic.org/

News & Info on Antibiotic Resistance

- The world is running out of antibiotics, WHO report confirms
WHO:- http://www.who.int/medicines/news/2017/world-running-out-antibiotics-WHO-report/en/
- Drug-Resistant Infections: A Threat to Our Economic Future
The World Bank:- http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/infographic/2016/09/18/drug-resistant-infections-a-threat-to-our-economic-future

World Antibiotic Awareness Week

2017-11-07T00:24:37+00:00

Antibiotic resistance is one of the considerable global threats affecting the health of anyone in the world. Various infectious diseases such as pneumonia and tuberculosis are now becoming difficult to treat due to the resistance against antibiotics according to the WHO.

For more information about antibiotic resistance
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/antibiotic-resistance/en/

The “World antibiotic awareness week!” is a campaign organized by the WHO to address these situations. Detail information and useful tools to help to understand antibiotic resistance are available from the WHO website.

World antibiotic awareness week: program page
http://www.who.int/campaigns/world-antibiotic-awareness-week/en/
Infographics: useful tools with pictures to understand the antibiotic resistance
http://www.who.int/campaigns/world-antibiotic-awareness-week/2017/infographics/en/
Infection and prevention: general information on infection and prevention
http://www.who.int/infection-prevention/en /

Hand hygiene is one of the best methods to prevent the expansion of infectious diseases. Saraya offers useful tools to promote hand hygiene in any healthcare setting.

Saraya useful tools for infection prevention and controls:

Join us at MEDICA 2017 in Germany

2017-11-10T00:10:48+00:00

Saraya will join MEDICA, the world's leading trade fair for the medical industry in Dusseldorf, from 13-16 November.

Saraya booth is located in Hall 5, Row K-14.
Please visit us at MEDICA.

Participation of Medica 2017

2017-11-21T00:02:07+00:00

Saraya Co., Ltd. participated in Medica 2017, which was held in Dusseldorf, Germany from 13th to 16th November. The Medica is the biggest exhibition for medical products in the world and there were 123,500 visitors from 130 countries this time. Various visitors also visited SARAYA booth located in Hall 5, Stand K14. We were able to spend a lot of time with new and existing customers who had an interest in our products. This year we showed our latest dispenser line, UD-1600 and MD-1600. Thank you very much for those who visited our booth!

ISPM-2017 was held in Moscow, Russia!

2017-12-06T08:00:27+00:00

The Annual Congress on Control and Prevention of Healthcare-Related Infections (ISPM-2017) organized by Rospotrebnadzor Research Institute of Disinfectology and the Central Research Institute of Epidemiology of the Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection of the Russian Federation was held on November 14-15, 2017 in Moscow, Russian Federation.

Saraya Co., Ltd. takes part every year in different projects and events relating to healthcare-associated infections and contributes to the development of studies and practices in the infection control field. President Yusuke Saraya was recognized by the All-Russian Scientific Practical Society of Epidemiologists, Microbiologists and Parasitologists for his contribution to infection control and healthcare-associated infection prevention.

Yusuke Saraya and Dr. Acam Akimkin

It was a great opportunity to deepen Russia and Japan ties, and for the first time this year, Professor Hiroshige Mikamo, head of the Department of Clinical Infectious Diseases and Head of the Department of Prevention and Control of Infections of the Medical University of Aichi, Japan, took part in the congress in Russia. The congress was honored to have Prof. Didier Pittet, Prof. Axel Kramer and Prof. Ojan Assadian to join and give lectures on the latest research in infectious disease prevention.


Prof. Axel Kramer	Prof. Hiroshige Mikamo

Russia has been highly evaluated by international healthcare institutions for making great efforts to reduce the influence of infectious diseases by innovative scientific and practical developments in various areas of Healthcare. Deputy Director for Centran Scientific Research Epidemiology Institute, academician Vasilii Akimkin was awarded by the Austrian Infection Control Society and by the WHO Geneve Collaborating Centre.


Acam. Akimkin with Prof. Assadian (Austrian Infection Control Society)	Acam. Akimkin with Prof. Pittet (WHO Geneve Collaborating Centre)

As the main sponsor of the Congress, Saraya Co. Ltd presented the latest developments for the prevention of healthcare-related infections, including dispensers, antibacterial soap, environmental and hand disinfectant, as well as personal protective equipment for patients and medical personnel. For the first time, Saraya presented new product Acecide Powder for manual washing, disinfection and sterilization of medical instruments.

SARAYA Presents Professor Pittet in Malaysia

2018-03-07T00:03:17+00:00

On 4th February, the Infection Control Seminar "CLEAN CARE IS SAFER CARE" was held in Penang, Malaysia with Professor Pittet from Geneve University Hospital by the Penang State Health Department and the Malaysia Ministry of Health.

Pulau Penang Hospital auditorium was packed with over 250 participants eager to hear Professor Didier Pittet.

Following a renewed statement pledging support for addressing healthcare-associated infections by local representatives, Professor Pittet gave three engaging presentations.

Professor Pittet made hospital ward visits to Hospital Pulau Penang and in Loh Guan Lye Hospital.

On the following day, February 5th, an Infection Prevention and Control Seminar was held in the UKM Medical Center at HUKM, The National University of Malaysia. More than 300 participants from 93 hospitals joined the seminar.

Topics regarding infection control were discussed in detail such as hand hygiene, monitoring compliance, antimicrobial resistance and antimicrobial stewardship.

SARAYA and SARAYA Goodmaid Malaysia were proud to support the seminar and improving infection control and patient safety in Malaysia.

Opening of the May 5th Campaign site

2018-04-25T00:35:58+00:00

'SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands' is the healthcare campaign led by the WHO to promote hand hygiene awareness to reduce Healthcare-Associated Infections.
Since 2010, Global Hand Hygiene Day has been celebrated on May 5th around the world to reinforce knowledge on hand hygiene and healthcare-associated infections.
And this year's WHO 5 May hand hygiene campaign slogan is "it's in your hands – prevent sepsis in health care".

Saraya is celebrating with a special campaign website.
Please take a look at our campaign website for information and useful tools such as posters and wallpapers to promote hand hygiene!

Visit our page and let's join the campaign!

World Hand Hygiene Day

2018-05-05T00:05:54+00:00

Social Media messages

Official WHO video message: https://youtu.be/0Y3qwQLNx3c (or https://tinyurl.com/WHO5May2018)
Short 5 may promotional video: https://youtu.be/sjkvt7Zh3HU (or https://tinyurl.com/5May2018)

How to support the campaign:

Go to the campaign page on the World Health Organization (WHO) website
Register to the campaign by clicking "Join the campaign now!" on the top right of the page
Download, print and personalize the official promotional board
Grab your colleagues and friends to take a photo together with the board (or take a photo by yourself, it's perfectly fine too!)
Post the photo(s) on social media with #HandHygiene and #Sepsis and join the global hand hygiene community in celebrating World Hand Hygiene Day!

More resources for you

Celebrate the International Infection Prevention Week, October 14-20

2018-10-01T00:01:43+00:00

The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC), who touts “365 days of commitment” to infection prevention is holding its International Infection Prevention Week (IIPW). This event is “7 days of focus” every third week of October to raise awareness on the role infection prevention plays to improve patient safety. SARAYA is supporting IIPW with a social campaign.

The 2018 theme for International Infection Prevention Week is Protecting Patients Everywhere.

Join your friends, family members, and healthcare professionals in celebrating International Infection Prevention Week (IIPW), October 14-20, 2018!

We’re also sharing posters. You can share them any way you want to remind everyone that Infection Prevention is Everybody’s Business!

Download all our posters here.


Download	Download	Download

Various activities and information are available at the APIC campaign site.
http://professionals.site.apic.org/

Join us at MEDICA 2018

2018-11-12T08:25:35+00:00

Join us at MEDICA, the world's leading trade fair for the medical industry in Dusseldorf, Germany, from today the November 12, till the 15th of November.

Saraya booth is located in Hall 5, Row K-14.

Please visit us at MEDICA.

World Antibiotic Awareness Week 2018

2018-11-12T00:08:06+00:00

Celebrate the World Antibiotic Awareness Week, 12-18 November!

Antibiotic resistance is a growing global threats which can affect anyone in the world. Various infectious diseases such as pneumonia and tuberculosis are now becoming difficult to treat due to the resistance against antibiotics, according to the WHO.

Misuse of antibiotics is a cause of generating resistance. Thus, it is important to know the situation and change behavior when prescribing or taking antibiotics for both healthcare workers and users. In addition, taking appropriate measures of infection prevention control is also an essential part of addressing antimicrobial resistance.

•	For more information about antibiotic resistance: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/antibiotic-resistance/en/

The “World antibiotic awareness week!” is a campaign organized by the WHO to address these situations. Detailed information and useful tools to help understanding antibiotic resistance are available from the WHO website. Let's join the campaign and promote awareness of antibiotic resistance!

•	World antibiotic awareness week. WHO campaign page: http://www.who.int/who-campaigns/world-antibiotic-awareness-week
•	Various advocacy tools are available from here: http://www.who.int/who-campaigns/world-antibiotic-awareness-week/advocacy-material
•	Infection and prevention. General information on infection and prevention: http://www.who.int/infection-prevention/en/

Hand hygiene is one of the best methods to prevent the expansion of infectious diseases. Saraya offers useful tools to promote hand hygiene in any healthcare setting.

SARAYA's useful tools for infection prevention and controls.

Participation in MEDICA 2018

2018-11-21T08:02:21+00:00

Saraya Co., Ltd. participated in MEDICA 2018, which was held in Dusseldorf, Germany from the 12th to the 15th of November. MEDICA is the largest medical trade fair in the world and many participants visited SARAYA's booth located in Hall 5, Stand K14. We were able to spend a lot of time with new and existing customers who had interests in our products.

It was also a great chance to showcase Atae Verde Professional, the complete line of eco-label certified professional cleaners and laundry products that offer excellent cleaning results in industrial and institutional applications areas while respecting environment and safety aspects.

Thank you very much for visiting our booth at MEDICA!

May 5th 2019 Campaign

2019-04-24T14:54:56+00:00

SARAYA, following our efforts in previous years, is participating again in the May 5th campaign lead by the World Health Organization (WHO) promoting hand hygiene awareness in order to reduce healthcare-associated infections. With the slogan “Clean care for all - it's in your hands” the focus this time around is to promote the global movement to achieve universal health coverage (UHC), i.e. achieving better health and well-being for all people at all ages.

This year we are also promoting this special day with our campaign site, with information and useful tools, such as posters and wallpapers, promoting hand hygiene.

Global Hand Hygiene Day has been celebrated on May 5th around the world reinforcing knowledge on hand hygiene since 2010. Join us once again, visiting the following link:

5 of May page

We also helped translate the official WHO campaign posters to Japanese, available at the following link:

https://www.who.int/infection-prevention/campaigns/clean-hands/pops-hh-posters/en/

As an extra bonus, this year there is even an official song! Click here to listen!

12th May: International Nurses Day

2019-05-12T08:17:21+00:00

Since 1965, we have celebrated International Nursing Day on the 12th of May to highlight the important role and contributions of nurses worldwide. For the last 2 years, the theme chosen by the International Council of Nurses is “Nurses: A Voice to Lead”, aiming for nurses to become more active and vocal in policy development and implementation. This year the emphasis is on “Health for all”, which means not only the availability of health services but a complete state of physical and mental health that allows a person to lead a socially and economically productive life. You can learn more on their website.

The date of the 12th of May refers to Florence Nightingale's birthday. She was a pioneer in modern nursing as well as in infection prevention and control. For her, education and training were a crucial foundation for improving hygiene. During the Crimean War, she improved living conditions in the hospital by implementing handwashing and training in other hygiene practices. Thanks to her leadership, hygiene improved in the war hospital, decreasing the death rate of patients.

The focus this year is about the challenge for healthcare workers to bring “Health for all”. At Saraya, we have been supporting the will to end exclusion and disparities in health for years. With our agreement to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), we are willing to help in the improvement of sanitation in developing countries through various projects. For instance, with our “100% Hospital Hand Hygiene Project”, we are providing alcohol hand sanitizing systems in hospitals and we are promoting hand-washing education to nurses in order to prevent healthcare infection in East Africa. We think it is important to offer our help to the healthcare workers with the right products to use, as well as with the good education about. It is the best combination to fight infections, improve people's care environment for the well-being and health of patients and workers.

Nurses are main actors of the Global Health Challenge, as they are at the forefront to fight against infections. They are also crucial to improving “Health for all” as they are facing everyday injustices and inequalities. They are also sometimes the only persons that people can talk to. Nurses can give a voice to the most vulnerable and excluded people. They can also make an impact on those they serve.

On this 12th of May, we would like to remind you all about the important role and well work that healthcare workers perform every day! We want to thank especially all the nurses for their professional care.

Saraya CIS participates in the Republican Scientific Practical Conference, Uzbekistan

2019-08-12T08:00:00+00:00

On the 17th of July, the city of Tashkent (Republic of Uzbekistan) hosted the Republican Scientific-Practical Conference on the topical issues of prevention of infections associated with the provision of medical care from the perspective of an interdisciplinary approach, viral-surveillance effort, disinfection and sterilization of medical devices in medical facilities. The event was organized by the “Saraya CIS” company in association with the “StopMicrobe” sales firm.

More than 80 experts from Uzbekistan attended the conference. The line-up included specialists in the fields of epidemiology, disinfectology and endoscopy, research staff from the RIEMID Institute, representatives of the Red Cross International Committee, International Organization “Doctors Without Borders” and Red Crescent International Organization, and members of the Society for International Cooperation and Project HOPE.

The Director of both the Research Institute for Epidemiology, Microbiology and Infectious Diseases and the Ministry Clinic, Doctor of Medicine and professor Atabekov Nurmat conducted a welcoming speech at the opening of the conference. He concluded that the prevention of healthcare-associated infections is a common goal for nurses, doctors, epidemiologists and teachers of educational medical Institutions.

The first speaker was Allaberganova Nigora who is the Head of Health Facilities Department in the Republican Center for Sanitary and Epidemiological Surveillance. She reported on the annually registered cases of healthcare-associated infections and factors contributing to the occurrence of healthcare-associated infections in hospitals and possible problem solutions in Uzbekistan.

The conference was attended by a leading researcher of the Moscow Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology – Ph.D. Grenkova Tatiana Arkadyevna. She spoke about the supervision of epidemiological safety in fiber-optic endoscopy, providing programs to improve hand hygiene in healthcare organizations. She also disclosed the epidemiological basis of disinfection measures in health facilities.

The participants of the conference discussed modern approaches to the prevention of healthcare-associated infections, interchanged views in implementation phases, and criteria for epidemiological efforts in hospitals. The event went hand in hand with a fruitful discussion, during which the lecturers answered the many questions of participants and guests.

The Saraya company offered an integrated approach to hand hygiene in medical institutions from the leading Japanese manufacturer and also means for disinfection and sterilization of medical products registered on the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Ph.D. Grenkova Tatiana Arkadyevna, Moscow Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology.

Representatives of the "Saraya CIS" company visited several modern medical facilities equipped with the latest equipment. The Сenter for Cardiovascular Surgery "American Hospital", as well as Multidisciplinary Medical Centers "AKFA Medline" and "EZGU NIYAT" demonstrated a high level of equipment. All clinics are provided with dispensers with antiseptic agents for the prevention of nosocomial infection. In the wash-ups for disinfection and sterilization of medical instruments the latest disinfectants are used, thus taking into account the safety of the personnel. "Saraya CIS" company has received numerous positive feedback on the products provided, both for hand treatment and disinfection of medical devices, including flexible endoscopes.

Healthcare-Associated Infections

2019-08-26T08:12:27+00:00

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), also called hospital-acquired infections, are nosocomial infections contracted by a patient which were not yet present or incubating at the time of admission. In Intensive Care Units, where serious diseases are treated, the rate of patients contracting HAIs is 1 in 10, resulting in hundreds of millions of patients around the world affected by a nosocomial infection every year. HAIs are an important problem to tackle as it represents one of the most frequent problems a patient may suffer during care delivery. So far, there is no healthcare facility or country that can claim to have solved this matter.

Causes

Most people that are staying in the hospital due to sickness will have a weak or compromised immune system, making them more likely to contract an infection. HAIs are about 90 percent of times caused by bacteria, with the rest due to fungus and viruses. The main bacteria involved are Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Escherichia coli (E. coli). Nosocomial pathogens can be transmitted through person to person, contaminated water, food or environment, infected individuals, contaminated healthcare personnel's skin or contact via shared items and surfaces. It results in prolonged hospital stays, long-term disability, increased resistance of microorganisms to antimicrobials, massive additional costs for health systems, high hospital costs for patients, as well as unnecessary deaths.

Symptoms & Treatments

Every person admitted to a healthcare facility is at risk for contracting HAIs, and the symptoms can vary from:

pain
irritation
discharge from a wound
fever
cough, shortness of breathing
burning with urination or difficulty urinating
headache
nausea, vomiting, diarrhea

Many doctors can diagnose HAIs by sight and symptoms alone, and as HAIs can lead to different diseases such as urinary tract infections (UTIs), gastroenteritis, meningitis and pneumonia it is vital for the patient to reveal to their doctor if they have any of above-mentioned symptoms. A nosocomial infection can occur up to 48 hours after hospital admission, up to 3 days after being discharged and up to 30 days after an operation.

Concerning the treatment, it will depend on the infection type of the patient. The doctor will recommend the best treatment that will typically involve a combination of antibiotics, a healthy diet, fluid intake, and bed rest. Seen the gravity of the disease HAIs can lead to, early detection and treatment are vital. Many people will likely make a full recovery with treatment, but in some cases, HAIs can dramatically increase risks creating life-threatening situations. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that around 2 million people contract HAIs with 100,000 of those cases resulting in death.

Infection Prevention Control

Seen the nature of healthcare facilities, it is not possible to completely eradicate nosocomial infections, but work can still be performed to decrease its appearance. The key is to focus on Infection Prevention Control since many infection prevention measures, including hand hygiene, are simple, low-cost and effective.

In order for these measures to work we require staff accountability and some behavioural changes. Healthcare workers are required to follow the recommended guidelines for sterilization and disinfection, with nurses having to be on the front line of infection control.

Healthcare workers have to carefully observe some measures as:

screening and identifying the type of patient needed to be isolated
observing hand hygiene, which involves washing or disinfecting hands, before and after touching people in the hospital
wearing appropriate gear, such as gloves, gowns, face protection, show and hear covers
cleaning surfaces properly with a recommended frequency
cleaning and disinfecting patient-care equipment
ensuring good ventilation of the patients’ rooms

The burden of HAIs is one of the key areas of work of the WHO IPC global unit in order to identify all possible risks and reduce them.

At Saraya, we have always worked to improve hygiene conditions in order to fight healthcare-associated infections, participating for years at the International Conference on Prevention & Infection Control (ICPIC). This conference offers a unique forum for participants to exchange knowledge and experience in the prevention of healthcare-associated infections and control of antimicrobial resistance around the world. It will be held in Geneva from the 10 to 13th of September this year and we will be glad to see you one more time in our booth.

Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis, a Pioneer in Infection Prevention

2019-09-04T00:00:40+00:00

During the mid-19th century, the mortality rate for mothers giving birth was tremendous in obstetrician clinics, reaching 30%. It was mainly due to a lack of hygiene practice, since at that time healthcare workers were not, as now, as aware of the huge impact that handwashing can have before touching patients. Dr. Semmelweis dedicated his life to studying how to decrease the number of patients dying from childbed fever, also known as Puerperal fever, creating great strides in the advancement of hygiene. Thanks to him and the nurse Florence Nightingale, another pioneer in Infection Control and Prevention that we mentioned in a previous article, awareness of hygiene in healthcare institutions was able to increase while infection rates decreased.

Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis. Photograph after a frieze in the Social Hygiene Museum, Budapest. Credit: Wellcome Collection. CC BY

Ignace Philippe Semmelweis (1 July 1818 – 13 August 1865)

His full name was Semmelweis Ignác Fülöp, as he was Hungarian. Dr. Semmelweis was a physician, educated at the universities of Pest (now part of Budapest) and Vienna, receiving his doctor’s degree from Vienna in 1844. After, he was appointed at the maternity clinic at the General Hospital in Vienna, where he started working as well as collecting some data for his own.

The reason for his investigations was that he wanted to figure out why so many women in maternity wards were dying from puerperal fever, commonly known as childbed fever. For that, he studied simultaneously two maternity wards in the hospital: One staffed by male doctors and medical students, and the other by female midwives. According to his data, he figured out that women in the clinic staffed by doctors and medical students died at a rate nearly five times higher than women in the midwives' clinic. He discovered that the difference between the 2 wards was, that in the male one, pathologists worked indiscriminately between helping mothers in childbirth and realizing autopsies on the dead. He also realized that those pathologists, although in much healthier conditions that delivering mothers, were also dying of the same infections. He concluded that students who came directly from the dissecting room to the maternity ward carried infections from patients who had died of disease to those healthy mothers. To solve the problem he ordered the students to wash their hands in a solution of chlorinated lime before each examination, succeeding in decreasing the mortality rate, but unfortunately, he was not supported by his superior.

In 1848, known as the “Year of Revolutions”, political unrest swept across Europe. Due to his political activities, he was not able to find a position in Vienna and by 1850 he returned to Pest, where he worked in hospitals until he was appointed professor of obstetrics at the University of Pest in 1855. Dr. Semmelweis finally started publishing papers and books on the subject of puerperal fever and handwashing, and in 1861 released his magnum opus – the book Etiology, Concept and Prophylaxis of Childbed Fever. Despite various publications of results where handwashing reduced mortality to below 1%, Semmelweis's observations conflicted with the established scientific and medical opinions of the time and his ideas were rejected by the medical community. According to them, he was not offering an acceptable scientific explanation for his findings, and some doctors were offended at the suggestion that they should wash their hands, ending even mocked for it.

Hand Hygiene

By the late 1870s, the germ theory and the value of antiseptic practices were now an established fact. In light of these, many began to re-evaluate Ignaz Semmelweis and his work was reappraised and found to be solid. His bleach handwashing was hailed by Joseph Lister himself as a clear forerunner to his own antiseptic regime. As “cadaverous particles” were found under a microscope, and identified as bacteria that fed on decaying flesh, then the famous Hungarian physician Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis theory finally made sense, transforming him into the forefather of hand disinfection. Now, washing hands and disinfecting them is known as a best practice in fighting the spreading of bacteria and germs, avoiding Healthcare-Associated Infections.

Infection Control

Nowadays, hospitals routinely request that visitors use alcohol-based disinfectant when visiting patients and surgeons have to “scrub up” before an operation, with cross-contamination of patients by infected hands of healthcare workers as a major method of spreading infectious agents. The rate of transfer of bacterial infections has decreased since Dr. Semmelweis discovery but this is still an issue even today. Infection control is crucial to limit the spread of Healthcare-Associated Infections and has to be carefully implemented in healthcare facilities.

“At least 33,000 patients die each year in Europe alone! We need increased consciousness for hospital hygiene and want to create political awareness for this important topic. Nosocomial infections, caused by hospital pathogens, can be drastically reduced through professional hand hygiene. Hospital infections and their consequences can be prevented – let us do something against it! Clean your hands – Save lives!”

- Prof. Didier Pittet, ICPIC Chair

In Geneva from the 10th to 13th of September, the International Conference on Prevention & Infection Control (ICPIC) will be held. This conference offers a unique forum for participants to exchange knowledge and experience in the prevention of healthcare-associated infections and control of antimicrobial resistance around the world. It will be our pleasure to see you there on our booth.

Saraya Participates at ICPIC 2019

2019-09-18T08:01:24+00:00

Last week in Geneva, Switzerland, at the 5th International Conference on Prevention & Infection Control (ICPIC), we were glad to be celebrating the 10 year anniversary of ICPIC! SARAYA, as supporters of ICPIC since its 1st year and a sponsor of the conference in more recent editions, participated in the events through the symposium “Mobilizing countries and stakeholders around the world to clean hands”, done on the 11th of September.

ICPIC has become an established entity in the field of international Infection Control and Prevention meetings, with an average of 1200 participants from more than 100 countries, offering a unique forum for participants to exchange knowledge and experience in the prevention of healthcare-associated infections and control of antimicrobial resistance around the world. This year, the focus was on pursuing its mission of improving patient safety everywhere at any time, bringing the patient to the conversation table, in line with the creation of the first-ever World Patient Safety Day on 17 September 2019. Don’t forget to save the day for next year!

We were very delighted to see you during the Congress on our booth and during our symposium, as it is always a pleasure to exchange information and opinions with the world leaders of infection prevention and control. For us, it was also the occasion to show our wide range of products for infection prevention and control, as our hand disinfectants effective against a broad spectrum of microorganisms and viruses. Used in combination with our No-Touch dispensers, we truly believe we can offer you one of the best prevention tools against cross-contamination.

And As Prof. Pittet stated during the opening ceremony of ICPIC “Clean Hands, Save Lives”, don’t forget to spread this message to contribute to safer healthcare for everyone!

Antimicrobial Resistance: Causes, Consequences and How to Fight it

2019-09-30T00:00:05+00:00

With the start of the season of colds and flu, many, tempted on getting back to full health as fast as possible, are using antibiotics as soon as any minor symptoms of an illness appear. Of course, antibiotics save lives when applied correctly, but any time antibiotics are used they can cause side effects and even lead to antibiotic resistance. For years now, through news online and offline, we have been taught about Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) as a global health emergency, a broad term that encompasses resistance to drugs that treat infections caused by microbes, such as parasites, viruses and fungi, resulting in making the medicine ineffective to cure infections. All the medical progress we have achieved until now is being endangered as our ability to treat infectious diseases reliably with antibiotics is becoming more and more compromised.

Causes of AMR

Antimicrobial resistant-microbes occur naturally but their spreading is facilitated by the inappropriate use of medicines. Found in the environment (water, soil and air), food, animals, and people, they can travel between hosts through simple things such as eating animal-originated food or contact between people. Poor infection control, inadequate sanitary conditions and inappropriate food-handling encourage the spread of antimicrobial resistance.

Antimicrobial resistance in humans also frequently occurs due to the overuse and inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics worldwide. Antibiotics, also known as antibacterials, are medications that kill or slow down the growth of bacteria, but many forget the fact that antibiotics cannot treat viral infections like colds and flu.

When to use antibiotics:

First, you should only take antibiotics when they are prescripted by a doctor and not just consume any leftovers you have in your cabin since auto-medication is never a good solution when you are sick. Doctors will provide antibiotics when it is needed, and only if a patient suffers from a bacterial infection or in a preventive way for high-risk infection situations like before an operation.

It's also crucial to finish all of your prescribed antibiotics, even if you feel healthy and back to normal. Antibiotic resistance can occur if you don’t finish all the prescriptions, as the bacteria will not have vanished completely but on the contrary, will become more resistant and more difficult to eradicate.

When not to use antibiotics:

When patients suffer from viruses antibiotics are not needed, so in the following cases they are ineffective :

Cold
Flu (influenza)
Bronchitis
Most coughs
Some ear infections
Some sinus infections
Stomach flu

Using antibiotics won’t cure the infection, and could cause unnecessary and harmful side effects such as vomiting, diarrhea, rash, yeast infections,...You can learn through the WHO website how to handle antibiotics with care and see in which situations they are needed or not.

Consequences of AMR

In the worst-case scenario of antibiotic resistance, there may be no antibiotics that are effective for serious antibiotic-resistant infections and then hospitalization may be needed, leading to the risk that the infection becomes even life-threatening. Even everyday medical procedures, such as organ transplantation, cancer chemotherapy, diabetes management and major surgery would become very high risk, something that could cause according to the ARM review 10 million deaths every year.

Other consequences are that more serious illness will occur, with longer recovery times in general, more-frequent doctor visits, and longer hospitalization resulting in more expensive treatments. Healthcare could become unaffordable, making its access even more difficult for developing countries. Antimicrobial resistance is present in every country and is a concern for everyone. For instance, in Europe, Japan and Australia some infections are already showing high levels of resistance, such as super-gonorrhea, which are particularly dangerous because they are easily transmitted and difficult to accurately diagnose.

How to fight AMR

Public awareness and Infection control are the keys to antimicrobial resistance. In fact, even in some countries in which national public awareness campaigns had been conducted, there was still a widespread belief that antibiotics are effective against viral infections. In April 2015, WHO published a “Worldwide country situation analysis: Response to antimicrobial resistance”, revealing that while much activity is underway and many governments are committed to addressing the problem, there are major gaps in actions needed across all 6 WHO regions. Since then, WHO also implemented the World Antibiotic Awareness Week (WAAW) in order to educate people to take antibiotics responsibly, which will be held on November, 18-24 this year.

Together with basic knowledge, Infection prevention and control programmes are needed to reduce the movement of antimicrobial-resistant organisms, starting with good basic hygiene, which limits the spread of all infections. Next, it needs to continue with the implementation and management of national and international programs with guidelines for antibiotics use and hygiene practices. Everyone needs to take action, from healthcare workers to patients, to governments.

WHO Global Survey on IPC and Hand Hygiene - Open until Nov 16th !

2019-10-03T08:01:38+00:00

From the 16 of January to the 16th of November, the WHO IPC global team and the WHO collaborating centre have been requesting acute health care facilities around the world to participate in the WHO global survey in order to understand the current levels of progress of infection prevention and control (IPC) programmes and hand hygiene activities.

7 weeks away from the deadline, there are still missing representation from a large number of countries in Europe, particularly from:

High-income countries such as: Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, UK
Low/middle-income countries: Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine, Uzbekistan
Upper/middle-income: Albania, Belarus, Hungary, Romania

Saraya, as an active member of the healthcare community, would appreciate if you could also help promote the uptake of the WHO global survey in healthcare facilities in any of the countries above or other countries where you are based. For further information and participation, click on the following link:

https://www.who.int/infection-prevention/campaigns/ipc-global-survey-2019/en/

What are the objectives of this survey?

To encourage and support local assessments of IPC and hand hygiene activities using standardized and validated tools, int the context of the regular work of the IPC teams/committees and the development of local improvement plans.
To gather a situational analysis on the level of progress of current IPC and hand hygiene activities around the world and inform future efforts and resource use improvement.

Timeline

This survey will be open for 4 months from 16 January to 16 November 2019.

Who is invited to participate?

Any acute healthcare facility around the world; participation will be voluntary. WHO also encourages Ministries of Health (ideally through their national IPC focal point/team) to take the lead in promoting and coordinating the survey process and data collection among health facilities in their country.

How does the survey work?

The survey has two levels, involving the completion of two tools at the facility:

The WHO Infection Prevention and Control Assessment Framework (IPCAF), and
The WHO Hand Hygiene SElf-Assessment Framework (HHSAF).

Each facility is meant to complete and submit each tool once in the context of this survey. Aan online system is available for data submission with each tool. All data submitted via the WHO IPC Global Survey online system will be confidential. English, French, and Spanish versions are available (see dedicated pages) as well as some other languages.

Vaccines are Everybody’s Business. Celebrating the International Infection Prevention Week 2019

2019-10-07T00:01:57+00:00

Saraya once again partners with the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) in promoting the International Infection Prevention Week (IIPW), October 13-19.

With this year’s theme of Vaccines are Everybody’s Business, APIC, and also us at SARAYA, hope to revert the spread of infectious diseases such as measles, which has resurged in “safe” countries such as the U.S.A. where is spreading in more than 30 states.

For the promotion of this week, APIC has developed a new infographic reminding patients and their families the important role herd immunity plays to stop the spread of vaccine-preventable diseases. Download the free Herd Immunity Infographic HERE!

Also, on Tuesday, October 15 at 12PM ET, APIC will host a twitter chat, which will discuss the important role that patients, friends, and family play in protecting public health through vaccination. To participate, follow the hashtag #IIPWChat.

Established in 1986, IIPW is celebrated in the third week of October. APIC spearheads the annual effort to highlight the importance of infection prevention among healthcare professionals, administrators, legislators, and consumers. It is now formally recognized in many areas around the world including the U.S., Australia, the United Kingdom, the Middle East, and Asia. As IIPW expands, more patients benefit from safer healthcare practices and reduced threat of healthcare-associated infections. Learn more about IIPW on their website, Facebook and Twitter (#IIPW).

15th of October 2019: Global Handwashing Day

2019-10-15T08:15:21+00:00

We could think that since the times of nurse Florence Nightingale and Dr. Semmelweis, with their discoveries and breakthroughs about the importance of washing hands for hygiene purpose, we would not need to state anymore that it is crucial to wash your hands with soap and warm water, but unfortunately, we still need to remind it to many everyday. That’s why for 11 years now, Global Handwashing Day has been celebrated on the 15th of October, as a global advocacy day dedicated to increasing awareness and understanding the importance of handwashing with warm soapy water as an effective and affordable way to prevent diseases and save lives. The original creators, signers of the Global Handwashing Partnership, form a coalition of international stakeholders who work explicitly to promote handwashing with soap and recognize hygiene as a pillar of international development and public health.

If you still wonder why you should wash your hands...

Hands are the part of the body that are most exposed to germs and substances in every environment shared with other people. Be it your home, office, schools, hospitals, shopping centres or public transport, you can pick up unwanted germs and transmit them to your mouth or to other objects or people.

As 80% of communicable diseases are transferred by touch, many germs that can make people sick are spread when we don’t wash our hands with soap and clean, running water. It is basic and recognized that handwashing with soap for at least 20 seconds, removes germs from hands that will prevent the spreading of infections since germs can get into the body through the eyes, nose and mouth or just by contact with surfaces. Simple facts like knowing that washing hands can reduce the number of people getting sick with diarrhea by 23 to 40% speak for themselves.

That is why handwashing is so important, especially:

After using public transport
Before preparing food
After touching raw, fresh or frozen fish or meat
After mopping, sweeping, removing garbage
After using the telephone
After using the bathroom
Before and after eating
After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing
After touching anything that might result in contamination of hands, like taking care of a wound or a cut, changing diapers or playing with an animal

Sadly, according to a survey held in the United States, only 67% of people practice any sort of hand hygiene, so the message still needs to be passed on; wash your hands and don’t forget to dry them thoroughly as well, as damp hands are 1,000 times more likely to spread bacteria than dry ones.

Some facts:

The 2019 Global Handwashing Day theme is “Clean Hands for All”, as people are still missing access to clean water and basic hygiene around the world, causing 4% of all the deaths and 5.7% of all disability or ill health globally. Indeed, according to a WHO and UNICEF report, more than 1 in 3 health facilities in low- and middle-income countries do not have any access to water at all, and because of lack of water, sanitation and poor hand-washing practices 30,000 women and 400,000 babies die every year from infections, such as puerperal sepsis, more than 150 years after Dr. Semmelweis work was recognized.

Visit the official global handwashing day to know more and participate.

This year’s theme follows the will to leave no one behind and to cut inequalities in handwashing facilities as stated in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The aim is to promote effective handwashing promotion programs to decrease the risk for diseases that impact health, education, and economic outcomes for all.

Wash a Million Hands! Project

Our company SARAYA Co., Ltd. was established in 1952 and developed medicated hand soap and dispenser for the first time in Japan, helping to prevent the spreading of infectious diseases like diarrhea in the post-world war II Japan with our antibacterial liquid soap. Willing to continue on this path, on the celebration of our 60th anniversary in 2010, we started the “Wash A Million Hand! Project”, contributing to handwashing education activities in Uganda. Thousands of mothers with young children have been educated in proper handwash, and many handwashing facilities have been installed through this program, which is funded by a donation of 1% of specific products in our line to UNICEF. In that way, we help to promote hygiene by spreading handwashing around the world.

Clean Hands Save Lives! is not only for the healthcare sector but as well for everyone in everyday life, so let’s celebrate every year the Global Handwashing Day and never forget the importance of hand hygiene!

The Role of Family and Hand Hygiene in Vietnam's Hospitals

2019-11-08T00:00:48+00:00

On the 15th of October, celebrating the Global Handwashing Day, Saraya celebrated several events around the world in order to promote proper handwashing in hospitals. On these events, we always go to hospitals and emphasize the importance of using alcohol sanitizer, properly washing your hands after critical moments in the fight against infections, such as when touching a patient or going to the bathroom.

One of these events, which was celebrated in Cho Ray Hospital, at Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, had a slightly different approach. When visiting a hospital, we generally aim our events to doctors and nurses, where most points of touch occur, but Vietnam has an important characteristic: family takes a greater role. In Vietnam it is normal that a patient's family will come to visit the ill on a regular basis, staying long periods of time and even getting involved in the healing process, something that occurs on a much lesser degree in other countries. This means that family members are constantly touching the patient, with the increase in risk that this entails. For this reason, on this occasion, we organized an event not only for healthcare staff but also for patients and their families, ensuring that when they touch the ones they care, they do it in a safe and hygienic manner.

During the event, Saraya Greentek's activities appeared on television, in an educational video that we are sharing below, where the steps for a proper hand wash are given.

Saraya, a Member of Clean Hospitals

2019-11-20T00:00:07+00:00

During Interclean, the world's largest cleaning trade show celebrated in May 2018, at Amsterdam, both the first Healthcare Cleaning Forum and the Clean Hospitals Industry Platform where launched by Professor Didier Pittet, with the goal of tackling the growing communication gap between the cleaning industry and healthcare facilities, in order to provide concrete answers to the issues faced in the sector by raising industry standards and increasing the importance of environmental hygiene in patient care. The Healthcare Cleaning Forum was designed as a platform for healthcare experts, cleaning experts, hospital managers and industry to meet in a productive way, summarizing all the state-of-the-art knowledge in the field, creating awareness and dialogue, challenging dogma and reshaping the research agenda for the development of the field on hospital hygiene and environmental control.

At Saraya, the above points align with our objectives as a key figure in the healthcare hygiene world. During the Interclean forum where we participated as a sponsor, we invited Professor Ojan Assadian, who held a presentation titled "Alcohol-based hand rubs as key partners to limit the spread of microbial pathogens in the healthcare environment", bringing awareness about the importance of combining hand hygiene and environmental hygiene (cleaning and disinfecting). Healthcare facilities are facing the major challenge that is Infection Prevention, with not only needing to improve their environmental hygiene to lower the cases of healthcare-associated infections but also to reduce antimicrobial resistance, which would be of great benefit to the public health. For these reasons, we are glad to partake in the Clean Hospitals Industry platform, a step forward to a healthier world, allowing industry experts and hospital management to work together, ensuring clean and safe hospitals for all patients and healthcare workers.

What is the Clean Hospital Industry platform?

Clean Hospital is an industry platform, connecting stakeholders, leading experts in Infection Prevention and hospitals to collaborate across disciplines. Its main areas of focus are surfaces, air, water, waste and sterilization/device reprocessing as hospital environmental hygiene is far more complex than other types of cleaning and needs to protect patients. Its activities gather academic research, education and training, raising awareness on the work organization and their environmental hygiene personnel have, the core of the proposal for the creation of this global initiative.

The main objectives of Clean Hospitals in which we are fully participating are:

Increasing hospitals’ awareness of the importance of maintaining a hygienic environment
Changing how hospitals calculate the cost/benefit of investing in better cleaning products and services
Developing comprehensive training and education programs
Championing high-quality products/processes for environmental hygiene, instrument disinfection/sterilization, waste management, air, and water treatment
Building up the body of evidence demonstrating the impact of improved environmental hygiene in healthcare settings and patient/worker safety
Aligning knowledge and procedures and improving hospital environmental hygiene recommendations across geographic regions and resource levels
Enhancing corporate social responsibility in the companies that produce or provide products and services for hospital environmental hygiene”

Visit the Clean Hospitals website here

A Brief Introduction to the Coronavirus

2020-02-04T00:17:06+00:00

What is Coronavirus?

The coronavirus is a single-stranded RNA virus with envelope and it has a diameter around 0.1μm. The virus spreads via droplets from such as cough, direct contact with infected person or contact of hands with contaminated environmental surfaces. So far, the below 6 types of coronaviruses are confirmed to infect humans. ¹

Flu virus among humans: 4 types Human Coronavirus (HCoV)：HCoV-229E, HCoV-OC43, HCoV-NL63, HCoV-HKU1
SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) – CoV
MERS (Middle East respiratory syndrome) –CoV

What is the feature of the 2019-nCoV, the novel coronavirus?

The 2019-nCoV is a newly identified coronavirus. The common symptom is fever and respiratory symptoms including cough and breathing difficulties. The viral infection also causes pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome and kidney failure for severe cases.² The estimated incubation period is ranged from 2 to 11 days but it could be up to 14 days according to the previous other coronavirus experiences. Detailed information is not yet confirmed including the animal source of infection. Thus, it is recommended to stay focus on the reliable latest information such as WHO. ³

How can we protect ourselves from coronavirus?

WHO recommends below practices to prevent infectious disease transmission including coronavirus. ⁴

Frequently clean hands by using alcohol-based hand rub or soap and water.
When coughing and sneezing cover mouth and nose with flexed elbow or tissue – immediately throw tissue away and wash hands.
Avoid close contact with anyone who has fever and cough.
If you have fever, cough and difficulty breathing seek medical care early and share previous travel history with your health care provider.
When visiting live markets in areas currently experiencing cases of novel coronavirus, avoid direct unprotected contact with live animals and surfaces in contact with animals.
The consumption of raw or undercooked animal products should be avoided. Raw meat, milk or animal organs should be handled with care, to avoid cross-contamination with uncooked foods, as per good food safety practices.

UPDATE: On Tuesday, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared an official name for the new coronavirus disease: COVID-19.

Reference

Infectious disease surveillance center (Japan), What is Coronavirus? (2020 / 1 / 10) (translated title) https://www.niid.go.jp/niid/ja/from-idsc/2482-corona/9303-coronavirus.html
WHO (2020) Coronavirus. Accessed on 3rd Feb 2020. Available at https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus
WHO (2020) Q&A on coronaviruses. Accessed on 3rd Feb 2020. Available at https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses
WHO (2020) Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) advice for the public. Accessed on 3rd Feb 2020. Available at https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public

Frequently Asked Questions and Myth Busters on COVID-19

2020-03-13T00:04:15+00:00

Dr. Lee Yew Fong, MBBS, OHD, MHM

Dr. Lee Yew Fong is a Doctoral candidate in Biomedicine (Global Health Track), at the Institute of Global Health, University of Geneva (UNIGE), Switzerland. Her doctoral work is under the supervision of the Infection Control Programme and the World Health Organization Collaborating Centre on Patient Safety, University of Geneva Hospitals (HUG) and Faculty of Medicine, Geneva, Switzerland. She is also medical doctor affiliated with the Ministry of Health, Malaysia. The views expressed are of her own and do not necessarily represent the UNIGE, HUG and/ or the Ministry of Health, Malaysia.

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English	Japanese	Simplified Chinese

What is a pandemic?¹

A pandemic is the worldwide spread of a new disease that is able to infect people easily and spread from person to person in an efficient and sustained way in multiple regions. The World Health Organization’s pandemic declaration refers to the SPREAD of a disease, rather than the severity of the illness it causes.

What is the difference when using the surgical mask and the N95?

Standard square loose-fitting surgical masks are good in protecting against droplet-spread to prevent infection. However, if you were to use it in the long term, the mask will no longer be efficient in stopping the transmission of viruses. The next level of a mask is the N95, which needs to fit well for you to breathe through the filter, rather than the leaking air.

What is social distancing?

Social distancing involves remaining out of congregate settings, avoiding mass gatherings², and maintaining ideally 3 feet (about 1 metre)³between people.

Is social distancing the same as self-quarantine or isolation?

Self-quarantine or isolation restricts the movement of people within a certain area or zone to limit transferring and spreading infection.

To be more specific, isolation refers to separating sick people from people who aren’t sick, while self-quarantine refers to the separation and restriction of movement of people who were exposed to the virus to see if they become sick. On the other hand, social distancing has no locational constraints; rather it is a behavioural practice to lower the risk.

What are some ideas and practical examples^4 3 of social distancing?

Libraries, auditorium, meeting rooms, cafeterias: If feasible, practice “1 person every 2 seats”.
Reception desks: Discussions limited to 15 minutes. Cleaning and disinfecting of reception desks to be more frequent.
While lining-up: A minimum distance of 3 feet (about 1 metre) should be maintained by those waiting in line.
Offices: Encourage teleworking when the nature of professional activities allows it, and according to the procedures established by management.

Does garlic have any effect at all against COVID-19?

There is no evidence from the current outbreak that eating garlic has protected people from COVID-19.

Are there medicines or therapies that can prevent or cure COVID-19?

While some western, traditional or home remedies may provide comfort and alleviate symptoms of COVID-19, there is no evidence that current medicine can prevent or cure the disease. The World Health Organization does not recommend self-medication with any medicines, including antibiotics, as a prevention or cure for COVID-19. However, there are several ongoing clinical trials include both western and traditional medicines.

Is there a vaccine, drug or treatment for COVID-19?

Not yet. To date, there is no vaccine and no specific antiviral medicine to prevent or treat COVID-19. However, those affected should receive care to relieve symptoms. People with serious illnesses should be hospitalized. Most patients recover thanks to supportive care. While there are several therapeutics currently in clinical trials in China and more than 20 vaccines in development for COVID-19, there are currently no licensed vaccines or therapeutics for COVID-19.

Is it safe to receive a package from any area where COVID-19 has been reported?

Yes. The likelihood of an infected person contaminating commercial goods is low and the risk of catching the virus that causes COVID-19 from a package that has been moved, travelled, and exposed to different conditions and temperatures is also low.

What is the case fatality rate? Is it the same as infection fatality rate?

The case fatality rate is the number of deaths divided by the total number of confirmed cases. Based on current data, the World Health Organization reports the global case fatality rate of COVID-19 to be 3.4%⁵, keeping in mind that figures are evolving and severe cases are always reported at the beginning of an outbreak because they are those we usually find first. However, scientists hope to have a more comprehensive number called the infection fatality rate over a period, which includes everyone who was infected with the virus.

Will the flu vaccination work for COVID-19?

While the influenza vaccine is not effective against the COVID-19 virus, it is highly recommended to get vaccinated each year to prevent influenza infection.

Does COVID-19 affect older people, or are younger people also susceptible?

People of all ages can be infected with COVID-19. Older people and people with pre-existing medical conditions (such as asthma, diabetes, and heart disease) appear to be more vulnerable to becoming severely ill with the virus.

Are antibiotics effective in preventing and treating COVID-19?

No, antibiotics do not work against viruses, only bacteria. However, if you are hospitalised for COVID-19, you may receive antibiotics since bacterial coinfection is possible.

Is wearing rubber gloves while out in the public effective in preventing COVID-19?

No, regularly washing or disinfecting your bare hands offers more protection against catching COVID-19 than wearing rubber gloves. You can still pick up COVID-19 contamination on rubber gloves. If you then touch your face, the contamination goes from your glove to your face and can infect you.

Is it safe for me to donate blood?⁶

Individuals are not at risk of contracting COVID-19 through the blood donation process since respiratory viruses are generally not known to be transmitted by donation that is conducted according to sterile collection protocols.

Myth busters⁷

Advice for the public based on the current evidence:

COVID-19 can be transmitted in areas with hot and humid climates.
Cold and snow CANNOT kill the COVID-19 virus.
Taking a hot bath does not prevent COVID-19.
The COVID-19 virus CANNOT be transmitted through mosquito bites.
Hand dryers are NOT effective in killing the COVID-19 virus.
UV lamps should not be used to sterilize hands or other areas of skin as UV radiation can cause skin irritation.
Spraying alcohol or chlorine all over your body will NOT kill the COVID-19 virus that has already entered your body.
At present, there is no evidence that companion animals/ pets such as dogs or cats can be infected with the COVID-19 virus.
Vaccines against pneumonia, such as pneumococcal vaccine and Haemophilus influenza type B (Hib) vaccine, do not provide protection against COVID-19.

Reference list

World Health Organization. WHO | What is a pandemic? [Internet]. World Heal. Organ.2020 [cited 2020 Mar 12]; Available from https://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/frequently_asked_questions/pandemic/en/2.
What Is Social Distancing? How The Coronavirus Outbreak Could Be Quelled By The Disruptive Public Health Measure [Internet]. [cited 2020 Mar 12]; Available from https://www.newsweek.com/what-social-distancing-how-coronavirus-outbreakcould-quelled-disruptive-public-health-measure-14917933.
World Health Organization. Advice for public [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2020 Feb 5]; Available from https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public4.
Preventive measures - Coronavirus - UNIGE [Internet]. [cited 2020 Mar 12]; Available from https://www.unige.ch/coronavirus/en/measures-prevention/5.
WHO Director-General’s opening remarks at the media briefing on COVID-19 - 3 March 2020 [Internet]. [cited 2020 Mar 12]; Available from https://www.who.int/dg/speeches/detail/who-director-general-s-opening-remarks-atthe-media-briefing-on-covid-19---3-march-20206.
Statement on Coronavirus and Blood Donation [Internet]. [cited 2020 Mar 12]; Available from http://www.aabb.org/advocacy/regulatorygovernment/Pages/Statement-on-Coronavirus-and-Blood-Donation.aspx
Myth busters [Internet]. [cited 2020 Mar 12]; Available from https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public/myth-busters

CC STEPs Biofilm Detection Kit wins Excellence Award

2020-05-07T00:03:39+00:00

We are delighted to announce that the SARAYA product CC STEPs Biofilm Detection Kit, a tool that allows clinical visualization of biofilm, has won the 32^nd "Small and Medium Enterprises Excellent New Technology / New Product" Excellence Award sponsored by Resona SME Promotion Foundation and Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun.

Skin ulcers like pressure ulcers (bed sores) and diabetic foot ulcers have a high risk of bacteria contamination and often seen as “chronic wounds” that do not heal for more than several weeks after the initial treatment. If left untreated, these "chronic wounds" could increase the risk of amputation of the lower extremities, sepsis, and sometimes death.

In recent years, it has been proposed that biofilm may be the cause of impaired healing of these chronic wounds. Biofilms are mucus substances formed by the adherence of microorganisms (mainly bacteria) and extracellular substances (glycoproteins, proteins, extracellular DNA, etc.). To form a visual image, pink, slimy biofilm is also formed around water in bathrooms, washrooms, kitchens, etc.

If there is biofilm in a wound, it should be removed to accelerate healing. Until now it has been difficult to confirm the presence of biofilm in clinical settings but with the arrival of the CC STEPs biofilm detection kit, it is possible to detect it in a short time. You can reduce the risk of wound deterioration by checking the presence of biofilm repeatedly during the healing process and applying the appropriate treatment according to test results, reducing the risk of wounds getting severe and improving the patient's QOL (Quality Of Life).

CC STEPs biofilm detection kit, the industry's first visualization technology for wound biofilm was highly evaluated, resulting in this award. We at SARAYA continue to contribute to infection control in the medical field, developing products and services for the safety and security of all people, from CC Steps to classic hand sanitizers.

Product Features

Quickly detect biofilm: It takes approximately 2 minutes to detect biofilm on a wound site. The process can be carried out at the bedside.
Less burden for detection: The test is non-invasive and easy to perform, thus less burden on the subject and medical staff.

Resona Small Business Promotion Foundation 32nd "Small Business Excellent New Technology / New Product" (Japanese)

Medical SARAYA "CC Steps Biofilm Detection Kit" Product Page (Japanese)Medical SARAYA "CC STEPs Biofilm Detection Kit" Product Page (Japanese)

COVID-19 Resource Hub Page Released

2020-08-03T02:10:33+00:00

SARAYA has recently published its COVID-19 Resource Hub page with frequently asked questions, useful links, hygiene posters, etc.

Although months have passed since the start of this epidemic, knowledge of how to prepare against COVID-19 is still very relevant to this day. On this resource hub, we provide you the information and relevant links you will need in this coronavirus-affected world together with SARAYA original posters to use and share with health recommendations.

Find all this information and more in the link below:

COVID-19 Resource Hub

Introducing Clean Hospitals Day

2020-09-23T00:59:09+00:00

Clean Hospitals, the Global Healthcare Environmental Hygiene Network, announced the launch of the Clean Hospitals Day for the 10th of October. This Global Awareness raising campaign highlights the importance of healthcare environmental hygiene and calls to join Clean Hospitals in celebrating and empowering key environmental hygiene healthcare workers.

The purpose of the Clean Hospitals Day is to ensure recognition of the importance of cleaning, disinfection and hygiene standards in the healthcare environment and making healthcare facilities a cleaner and safer place. It will also provide evidence-based guidance and best practice to decision-makers and relevant stakeholders ensuring healthcare systems across the world are unilaterally better equipped to protect patients, visitors and staff.

OBJECTIVES OF THE 2020 CLEAN HOSPITALS DAY

To call on hospital management, decision-makers & stakeholders to champion environmental hygiene and to take action to make hospitals cleaner and safer.
Recognize key healthcare workers, give them the appreciation they deserve as their work is very important and often goes unnoticed and is undervalued.

For who is this Day?

All people working or involved at any level in healthcare environmental hygiene and cleaning are celebrated. This means all hospital stakeholders, from Hospital management to healthcare key workers.

Objectives of the 2020 Clean Hospitals Day

The purpose of the 2020 Clean Hospitals Day is to highlight our Heroes behind the scene. It will highlight key healthcare workers; give them the appreciation they deserve as their work is very important and often goes unnoticed.

The 2020 campaign will also call on hospital management, decision-makers & stakeholders to champion environmental hygiene and to take action to make hospitals cleaner and safer.

Celebrate the Clean Hospitals day together with us and spread the word.

2020 World Patient Safety Day Posters

Clean Care is Safer Care 15th Anniversary

2020-10-13T00:28:20+00:00

15 years have passed since the start of Clean Care is Safer Care. Launched on October 13, 2005, by inviting all Ministries of Health from around the world to join and pledge to fight healthcare-associated infections, it has grown considerably in number over time, with now more than 140 countries and 23,000 hospitals joining the initiative.

SARAYA, as a proud promoter over the years, wants to share the excitement for this milestone and toasts for further achievements in the future. Remember: hand hygiene saves between 5 and 8 million lives every year in the world. Hand hygiene is now more important than ever while we are facing Covid-19.

Join the celebration on social media with the hashtag #CleanHands15 promoting hand hygiene to fight the global pandemic.

More information can be found on www.CleanHandsSaveLives.org

We love Infection Preventionists! Celebrating IIPW 2020

2020-10-15T07:50:59+00:00

Infection prevention is more relevant more than ever during this year's COVID-19 global pandemic. Together with APIC and as always, we are celebrating between the 18-24 of October the International Infection Prevention week (IIPW), which under the theme "We Love IPs", honours the hardworking infection preventionists (IPs) who are keeping our communities safe.

We Love Our IPs

COVID-19 has shown the world a truth we've always known—infection preventionists (IPs) are essential to keeping our communities safe. In addition to all the usual suspects (healthcare-associated infections, the resurgence in measles outbreaks, flu season, etc.), the infection prevention and control community is simultaneously battling a global pandemic for the foreseeable future. Let's make sure we recognize our IPs during International Infection Prevention Week this year. Do your part - celebrate our IPs!

Find below original SARAYA posters to promote infection prevention and the vital role of IPs:

For more information, click here to visit the official website for this year's IIPW.

Join us: Infection Prevention in Nursing Homes Virtual Summit

2020-11-16T00:32:55+00:00

You are invited to a virtual summit of global leaders in the field of infection prevention and control in long-term care facilities convened by The New York Academy of Medicine, in partnership with the Yale School of Nursing and partially supported by SARAYA.

The goals of the summit are to:

Critically examine evidence-based practice guidelines for infection prevention and control in skilled nursing and assisted living facilities,
Understand key barriers to implementing these best practices, and
Propose sustainable regional and global solutions.

This summit is intended for professionals who work in long-term care, including administrators, clinicians, regulators, researchers, and policymakers.

The summit will be held twice to accommodate audiences in different geographic regions and time zones:

December 2 from 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM ET, which will focus on North America and Europe
December 8 from 8:00 PM - 9:30 PM ET, which will focus on North America, Asia and Australia

For more information, click on the following link:

https://www.nyam.org/events/event/virtual-summit-infection-prevention-nursing-homes/

Direct links to registration on each day

North America and Europe

Wednesday, December 2, 2020
Time: 11:00AM - 12:30PM ET

North America, Asia, Australia

Tuesday, December 8, 2020
Time: 8:00PM - 9:30PM ET

Dec 27: International Epidemic Preparedness Day

2020-12-15T01:31:49+00:00

The United Nations (UN) has declared December 27 2020 as the “International Day of Epidemic Preparedness” as the COVID-19 epidemic has taken over a million lives since emerging nearly a year ago at the start of 2020. The General Assembly proclaimed the day “to highlight the importance of the prevention of, preparedness for and partnerships against epidemics”

The adoption came days after hundreds of world leaders took part in a virtual special session of the international body in response to COVID-19, where urgent action to guarantee an equitable distribution of vaccines was demanded.

Viet Nam’s representative introduced the text explaining how COVID‑19 is not the first epidemic in recent years, nor will it be the last. “The pandemic caught us off guard, but it also has served as a wake‑up call for improving our preparedness.” By having a symbolic day such as the International Day on Epidemic Preparedness it will help to achieve that goal, he said.

Worldwide, the death toll from COVID-19 has surpassed 1.5 million since the virus was first detected in Wuhan, China in December 2019. The number of cases totals more than 69.5 million and recoveries over 44 million, according to the latest figures from US-based Johns Hopkins University (data as of 11 of December).

How Saraya is fighting against COVID-19 on 2020

SARAYA has improved its preparedness to fight epidemics since the start of the COVID-19. On top of increasing the numbers and spots where infection prevention tools, including alcohol-based hand disinfectants, are available, we have started to provide evidence-based information that can be useful either for professionals in healthcare and food sanitation so as for consumers in the community.

Not only a supplier of handwashing products and disinfectants, SARAYA is engaged in various infection prevention projects around the world, such as hand-washing events, donating disinfectants, infection prevention in nursing homes research projects, and so on.

We will continue to contribute to infectious disease control by establishing a product supply system to meet increasing demand and dispatch the cutting-edge information for infection prevention.

For more information about how SARAYA can help you improve your preparedness, visit our three segments below:

HEALTHCARE

PROFESSIONAL

CONSUMER

For more information about COVID-19, visit our Resource Hub below:

COVID-19 Resource Hub

Frequently asked questions, useful links, tools, and knowledge about the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Click here

The Making of Alsoft, Saraya’s Signature Alcohol Hand Sanitizer

2021-05-10T02:27:17+00:00

Saraya as a company has been developing hand soaps and detergents since its inception but in order to grow their line of products to offer more hygiene solutions their next natural step was to develop a hand sanitizer, an alcohol solution which would let you sanitize your hands without the need of water.

Handsanitor, Saraya’s first-hand sanitizer, came out in 1977, but it needed to be upgraded to a more effective sanitizer containing more alcohol. The problem with this is that alcohol damages the skin. How can we create an alcohol-based hand sanitizer without damaging skin? The project started with just two researchers, Dr. Taro Furuta, known as Saraya’s Dr. Handwashing, and Dr. Koji Kihara, now a General Manager at the Global Operations Division Sales & Marketing Dept.

Finding the right ingredients

There were two main hurdles to overcome.

The first one was to find the right disinfectant to enhance the disinfecting power. They started looking for a disinfectant to strengthen the sanitizing effect, with 2 kinds already in their mind, chlorhexidine and benzalkonium chloride, popular in Japan. After researching and consulting with dermatologists, they chose chlorhexidine gluconate from the viewpoint of skin safety. Succeeding in creating 2 new synthesized chemicals with the help of Osaka University, efficacy was confirmed through experimentation.

The second was to find the right emollient to protect the user’s hands without reducing disinfecting power. This wasn’t as easy as selecting the right disinfectant because there are countless emollients. They began analyzing theses written by researchers, one day coming across a thesis about a Skin Feel Index written about 20 years before, which listed the effect of emollients on the skin surface. The authors tried to use the ratio of both the Initial Slip (how you feel on your skin when you put it on) and the End Feel (how you feel in the end) as the Skin Feel Index, expressed as the sum of four factors: smoothness, friction, oiliness, and wetness, each rated on a five-point scale.

With about 100 emollients on their list to experiment, Dr. Furuta and Dr. Kihara searched for available materials, such as cosmetic ingredients, and kept experimenting one by one, day after day. One day, they came across an emollient that did not reduce the disinfecting efficacy, but on the contrary, it enhanced efficacy! It turned out to be a material that was already being used in cosmetics, although not as a moisturizer, but as a fragrance excipient, which is a substance to stabilize fragrance. This process took them about 1 year of research plus six extra months to come up with the right formula through stability tests.

Hibiscohol enters the market

It was in 1986 when they finally filed it as an ethical drug product as well as a pharmaceutical additive to the Ministry of Health in Japan. It was the company’s first patented product both in Japan and in the USA. The patent was obtained in 1988 and the Ministry of Health granted the production permission in 1989, beginning production in 1990 under the name Hibiscohol (Alsoft in other countries). Their thesis was published in an academic journal in Japan as well.

First released as a drug for medical use in the healthcare industry, when the devastating Tohoku earthquake occurred in 2011 this hand sanitizer came into use by the general public, due to hygiene conditions deteriorated by the lack of clean water during long periods of time. Ten years later, Saraya’s Alsoft is available in many parts of the world helping in the fight against infectious diseases, be it food poisoning, noroviruses, Ebola, or Covid-19.

Extracts of conversations with Dr. Taro Furuta

Dr. Taro Furuta was the head of Saraya Biochemical Laboratory and advisor for many of SARAYA's hand hygiene products for the past 50 years, making him one of the leading figures of hand hygiene in Japan.

Celebrating Hand Hygiene at Shanghai East Hospital

2021-06-01T05:07:36+00:00

The celebration of World Hand Hygiene Day on the 5th of May is always a great reminder that hygiene mindfulness never stops. In order to raise hand hygiene awareness among the public, Saraya Shanghai held a hand-washing event at the Shanghai East Hospital on 13 May 2021. With the cooperation of hospital staff and posters displayed in advance, and it was a grand event in which about 200 people, including children, participated.

At the event, using Saraya's hand sanitizers, infection control specialists explained the correct method of maintaining hand hygiene. After that, using the Hand Disinfection Training Lotion, participants checked whether hand sanitizing was performed properly, an exciting moment at the event, and an opportunity for each participant to learn enthusiastically based on practice. In addition, by repeatedly showing hand hygiene videos on the monitors of the hospital, not only the participants of the event but also many people who visited the hospital were drawn to its importance.

Infection control specialists explained the proper method of hand hygiene.

Saraya Shanghai gave participants a small-sized disinfectant, convenient to carry, as a gift together with a pamphlet that described how to practice hand hygiene, great for practice what they learned at the event. Through this event, we were able to work on raising hand hygiene awareness for many people and we were happy to see everybody, from children to adults, participating.


Infection-control specialists for the event at the Shanghai East Hospital.	People of all ages, from children to adults, participated.


Using Saraya's Hand Disinfection Traning Lotion and Checker, it was an opportunity for participants to enjoy learning the correct hand hygiene method based on their practice.


After the event, participants received disinfectant and a pamphlet as a gift, so they can practice from now on proper hand hygiene.

Designing for the Future: Improving SARAYA Bottles in a Healthcare Setting

2021-07-14T02:22:19+00:00

There is always room for improvement. In SARAYA’s push for sustainability, reducing the amount of plastic used in our bottles is something we are constantly working on. While on our consumer products we can aim towards reducing plastic use or using recycled plastics and bioplastics in combination with refills, products intended for healthcare have their own unique set of challenges and require a special approach. The reason lies in high hygiene standards that make it difficult to reuse products. Hand soap used in medical institutions is often consumed in its original container, disposing of it after its use to ensure infection prevention. This means that these bottles have a shorter lifecycle and create large amounts of waste, a problem that can’t be solved with a refill pack, unlike a customer who uses hand soap at home.

To reduce this huge amount of waste that a hospital may incur we have made 2 changes, starting with our Whip Wash Fragrance-Free and Shavonet UM P-5 1kg bottles. Together with a third change that allows a faster content confirmation, the new bottle design ensures not only better disposal, but an easier use.

A thinner bottle with less plastic

The first change consisted of reducing the amount of plastic used in each bottle, which posed a challenge due to the need of maintaining the integrity of the bottle shape. We originally tried reducing the weight of the bottle by about 20% of its original shape, thinning the used plastic, but this led to the bottle’s deformation with labels rubbing and peeling off inside their cardboard boxes during transportation. We settled on a 15% of reduction, where no deformation occurred, achieving thinness without compromising the product value.


Whip Wash Fragrance-Free new bottle.	Shavonet UM P-5 new bottle.

That 15% of the removed weight is about 10g per bottle. Based on our sales numbers during 2019 and 2020, we calculated that if we sell 350,000 1kg bottles of Whip Wash Fragrance-Free and Shavonet UM P-5, up to 3,5 tons of plastic will be reduced each year, cutting plastic waste in the healthcare sector.

Easier to fold body

The second change we wanted to implement was to find a way to reduce the volume of the bottle after its use. As mentioned before, in order to reduce or eliminate infections, waste created in medical institutions is cataloged as medical waste and dealt with by a stricter yet more expensive disposal procedure. If a hand soap bottle is used, it has to be disposed of and substituted with a new bottle.

The new Whip Wash and Shavonet designs allow a reduction of volume up to 65%.

A request we were frequently receiving was the need for foldable bottles that could be reduced in size after use, reducing transportation costs. Thanks to a series of “ribs” that act like hinges on all sides of the bottle, you can now easily fold and squeeze the bottle, reducing its volume by about 65% compared to its original size. With this reduction in space, we were able to achieve greater efficiency in waste disposal, reducing trips and transportations costs at the same time.

Confirming remaining amount at a glance

The third change, although intended more for ease of use rather than to reduce costs, still indirectly ensuring that every drop of soap is used. As a feature we already had in our Whipped Wash bottles, many of our clients requested that we also included a window stripe in the Shavonet UM P-5 bottle. Thanks to this transparent slit placed on the side of the bottle it is now easy for doctors and nurses to check how much liquid is left, which allows predicting when a bottle needs to be changed with just a quick glance.

A clear window on the side permits checking how much is left on the Whip Wash bottle.

The new bottles with these changes will be available for our clients in Japan in the following months. Always aiming for a sustainable future, we hope to share even more changes in the not distant tomorrow.

HosCom International 2021 Released

2021-10-11T06:09:21+00:00

SARAYA is happy to share the 2021 version of Hoscom International. HosCom, which stands for Hospital Communication, aims to provide useful information to healthcare professionals involved in Infection Prevention and Control, to promote the global sharing of knowledge and experiences. By freely offering this knowledge, we work to improve infection prevention not only in healthcare but also in society as a whole.

In this edition, Dr. Anucha Apisarnthanarak shares his perspective on environmental cleaning and healthcare-associated infections in Asia, the Clean Hospital team introduces a new global network for the improvement of healthcare environmental hygiene, and Ms. Duong Linh Trang presents the results of their hand hygiene promotions at schools in Vietnam during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read and download the 2021 volume at the following link:

HosCom International 2021

For more information about our healthcare services and the previous edition, visit our Healthcare Solutions page here.

SARAYA celebrates the 2021 International Infection Prevention Week

2021-10-13T05:21:32+00:00

Some countries have already started carefully lifting restrictions while others are still struggling from COVID-19. Either way, the safety of patients is still, and always will be, crucial. Hospitals around the world are busy fighting the coronavirus pandemic, but we mustn't forget about other foes as well; healthcare-associated infections are not to be taken lightly, especially in the light of the upcoming flu season. And in this time of ongoing war with bacteria and viruses, APIC's IIPW awareness campaign, which will take place October 17-23, can arm us up with the necessary tools and knowledge. Following last year’s IIPW's theme that honored infection preventionists (IPs), this year’s message “Make Your Intention Infection Prevention” is still strongly connected to it, focusing on the science behind infection prevention and inspiring the next generation of IPs to join the fight.

IPs are a diverse group of healthcare professionals that have one common mission – to make sure that patients and healthcare workers remain protected from infections by washing their hands, staying well-informed, and following all safety guidelines. We believe that we all should be a little bit IPs, watching over each other to protect ourselves and those around us!

Join us in honoring International Infection Prevention Week, take a look at our posters, and learn more on the official website here.

Find below original SARAYA posters to promote infection prevention:

Completion of Infection Prevention Compendium for Long-Term Care Facilities

2021-11-22T06:12:39+00:00

Access the Infection Prevention Compendium here

With the demand for nursing homes and elderly care facilities increasing year by year due to the aging of the population, the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in large-scale infections in elderly care facilities. Compared with normal healthcare facilities that consist of doctors and nurses, the staff working in facilities for the elderly also include Specialized Providers for treatment and rehabilitation, care providers that assist facility users, and support staff that provides cleaning and meal preparation.

In order to help prevent infections in the facilities not only for the patients but also for their families who come to visit and the many staff members in contact with them, SARAYA, in cooperation with the New York Academy of Medicine (NYAM) and the Yale School of Nursing (YSN), has developed an Infection Prevention Compendium For Long-Term Care. This tool aims to provide infection control information that is easy to understand and use by anyone, accessible online for free.

The Compendium consists of the following four sections:

1. Infection Prevention Tools & Resources for Direct Care Providers, Administrators, and Support Staff

“Infection Prevention Tools & Resources for Direct Care Providers, Administrators, and Support Staff” provides useful information for medical providers, nurses, therapists, cooks, recreational staff, visitors, and other professionals. In addition to basic infection control tips such as when to use hand sanitizer and how to properly wear PPE, the site also offers information on how to cope with stress and care for patients during a COVID-19 pandemic.

2. International and US Infection Control Resources

This site introduces reliable resources for each country. You can check the source of reliable infection control information in your country.

3. Summary of NYAM Reports

For this project, NYAM conducted a survey of infection control practices in nursing homes, interviewed nurses and caregivers, and held a virtual summit with infection control experts. The reports are available here.

4. Teaching Tools

Teaching tools in PowerPoint format for administrators, family members, nurses, residents, and specialized contract providers. This source includes specific information on infection control and discussion topics so that participants can deepen their knowledge and have an opportunity to think about infection control independently.

SARAYA, NYAM, and YSN have collaborated to create an infection control kit that is easy to understand and can be immediately put into practice for anyone involved in nursing homes. All the information is a resource from reliable public institutions. We would be very happy if even a little bit of this information could contribute to the common knowledge of infection control and help reduce infections in facilities.

Saraya Australia Sponsors World Hand Hygiene Day at St. Andrew's Toowoomba Hospital

2022-05-27T06:42:33+00:00

SARAYA was present once again in a World Hand Hygiene Day event in Australia, this time supporting the St Andrew’s Toowoomba Hospital, in Queensland, Australia in celebrating the event with resources and funding.

The Hospital’s executive staff visited the stand and seemed pleasantly surprised with the interactive element & the activities educating the importance of hand hygiene, and helped cut a cake we shared, as a thank you to all the staff for their work during the past 2 years during Covid pandemic conditions.

Below, we are listing our activities for the day, which we hope will inspire you to also participate in the World Hand Hygiene Day in future editions.

Educational Activities included:

Hand Wash Technique using Black Light

Staff rub into their hands a special moisturiser and try to wash them properly. Afterwards, they come back to the black light to see if they succeed. If their hands "glow" under the black light, this identifies the areas that were missed whilst hand washing.

This is a great training tool, which enables people to see which areas on their hands they miss, and what they can improve.

5 Moments of Hand Hygiene

You have to name all 5 moments in the correct order. A fun way to interact with people to see how well they know the moments where infections can be transmitted if hand hygiene is not correctly applied.

Plush Germs Dartboard

Throwing "germs" onto the dart board. Fun, interactive game to engage the staff while giving the opportunity to speak about log reduction (how thoroughly a decontamination process is) in effective hand sanitisers.

Saraya Chattabox Game

Fun & engaging way to interact with staff. The subjects were tailored to incorporate education around hand hygiene. This game added a fun element to hand hygiene and was very well received by all the participants.

Staff participating in these activities then entered a raffle to win gift and drink vouchers. Overall the day was a success and with many staff members attending it was a great opportunity to bring awareness to the campaign and unite everyone for the day in the name of safety!

Clean your hands, stay safe!