HSC Symposium 2024

In the first session Prof Dr Swen Malte John (Head of the Department of Dermatology, Environmental Medicine and Health Sciences at the University of Osnabrück Scientific Director of the Institute for Interdisciplinary Dermatology Prevention and Rehabilitation at the University of Osnabrück (iDerm) Osnabrück, Germany), Prof Dr Ojan Assadian (Medical Director Landesklinikum Wiener Neustadt Wiener Neustadt, Austria), Dr James Arbogast (JW Arbogast Advanced Science Consulting LLC Ohio, USA) and Prof Dr Frauke Mattner (Head of Institute for Hygiene at Kliniken der Stadt Köln gGmbH Cologne, Germany, Chair of Hygiene and Environmental Medicine at University Witten/Herdecke, Germany) reported on different aspects on hand hygiene. From occupational safety to electronic monitoring systems. The importance of this topic is underlined by the statements of Prof Dr Swen Malte John: ‘Your skin is the most important two square metres of your life’ andProf Dr Ojan Assadian: ‘if you’re a healthcare worker, your hands are not your hands, but they are medical devices’.

In the second session Dr Florian H. H. Brill (Managing Director Dr. Brill Institutes Hamburg, Germany), Dr Marco Krewing (Scientist at HARTMANN SCIENCE CENTER Hamburg, Germany) as well as Prof Dr Johannes Knobloch (Specialist in Microbiology, Virology, Infection Epidemiology and Head of the Department for Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) - Institute of Medical Microbiology, Virology and Hygiene at University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) Hamburg, Germany) gave an overview about innovations in surface hygiene. Their presentations emphasised the need for further development of practical disinfectant testing and new product development.

The third session began with presentations from Dr Renke Lühken (Junior Research Group Leader at Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine Hamburg, Germany) and Prof Dr Andreas Widmer (President Swissnoso and emeritus chief physician for Infectiology and Hygiene at University Hospital Basel, Switzerland), who gave an overview of the impact on climate change on the spread of mosquito-borne pathogens in Europe and on healthcare and surgical site infections.

Sustainability was next on the agenda, starting with a presentation from Prof Dr Simone Häußler (Sustainability Consultant and Professor for Sustainability Management at Aalen University of Applied Science, Germany), followed by two talks from the UK and Austria by Dr Kenneth Barker (Consultant Anaesthetist, Clinical Lead for Sustainability NHS Highland, Clinical Lead of the National Green Hospitals Programme for the National Centre for Sustainable Delivery in Scotland (CfSD) Raigmore Hospital, Scotland/UK) and Simon Wurzer (Head of Nursing Department in Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine at State Hospital Villach Kärnten, Austria), who shared their experiences with grassroot movements in their respective countries and hospitals.

Felix Heinricy and Janina Pridöhl (Resourcify GmbH, Hamburg, Germany) and Michaela Sieger (PAUL HARTMANN AG Heidenheim, Germany) concluded with presentations on sustainable waste management and HARTMANNs sustainability strategy. During the coffee breaks, on site participants and speakers took advantage of the opportunity to discuss and network at the poster stands.

For more information, please see the video recordings of the symposium lectures. Also available for free download are the posters from the poster session.