Reminder system for basic hygiene routines

Important results from the project

Basic hygiene routines have always played a central role in reducing the spread of infection, and the pandemic focused on this among Sweden´s nursing homes. The difficulty of maintaining these routines in everyday life is well suited to attack with an automatic reminder system. The project was based on a patent-pending algorithm to complete the task and the project´s objective was to design a product that can help healthcare professionals remember the most important basic hygiene routines. The goal has been met, but there is still work to be done to validate the software in the product.

Expected long term effects

The innovation can help healthcare professionals maintain a high level of adherence to basic hygiene routines, and thus effectively curb the spread of infection. The project has resulted in a prototype that has been tested in nursing homes as well as a finished hardware design for an imaginary first product. Evaluation of data shows that compliance is positively affected by the innovation and with the hardware that has now been developed, a first product has been realized, even though the software for the system was not fully completed within the project framework.

Approach and implementation

The project was carried out together with two municipalities that contributed with test environments and expertise. In general, the original project plan was followed, but the pilot study was divided into two parts, where the focus on part number two was to make better use of the opportunity to map the specific problems that arise in a real environment with caregivers and care recipients. The pilot used standardized electronics and simpler mechanics, and the experience from this made it possible to design and obtain a pre-series of the first product´s hardware with great confidence.