The Semmelweis Reflex: When beliefs trump facts
The knee-jerk reaction to reject new evidence because it contradicts established beliefs is named after Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis (1818-1865). The physician discovered a visionary way to save countless lives – only to have his own life destroyed when his theories were ridiculed. Imagine the Viennese general hospital in the 1840s: The biggest medical institution in […]
Hand hygiene compliance is the key in neonatology units: General Hospital Vienna relies on modern technology for performance feedback
On a global scale, infections are the third leading cause of neonatal mortality. Therefore, a focus on careful hand hygiene practice plays a valuable part in infection prevention strategy, especially at the newborn ward. In the neonatology unit of the General Hospital Vienna/Medical University Vienna, an evidence-based, AI-enhanced quality assurance system provides immediate visual feedback […]
World Antimicrobial Awareness Week 2021: Semmelweis Foundation went blue
For World Antibiotics Week, which takes place every year in November, the Semmelweis Foundation has launched a high-profile awareness campaign and called on employees and supporters to “go blue”. The goal of the social media campaign was also to take the public along in the responsibility and to raise awareness for a more thoughtful use […]
Global Handwashing Day 2021: Hand hygiene and the fight against multi-resistant germs and hospital infections
Healthcare facilities are still a place of healing, but what if instead of healing, the opposite happens: and you get sick ? What we were less aware of just a few years ago, is unfortunately becoming more present today, also due to the Corona pandemic: Deaths resulting from infections in health care facilities. In Europe […]
Viruses can help when antibiotics no longer work
Every now and then, patients can be found to be resistant to antibiotics. Every year, thousands of people die from infections caused by bacterial inflammation against no antibiotic is effective. This is where physicians often begin to doubt and to laboriously search for alternatives. But, there are already therapies that have been used for 100 […]