Executive Summary
Infections associated with healthcare affect hundreds of millions of people annually, leading to high mortality and illness rates. The risks of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are 2-3 times higher in historically disadvantaged countries and account for 75 percent of neonatal deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Asia. HAIs also lead to tremendous healthcare costs, and the use of antibiotics to treat the infections contributes to the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance. Preventing HAIs requires minimal budget action or changes in healthcare practices.
Save the Children, WaterAid, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, and Kinnos will integrate evidence-based solutions to prevent HAIs. Bold Action to Stop Infections in Clinical Settings (BASICS) will launch in four demonstration countries: Tanzania, Nigeria, Cambodia, and Bangladesh. In five years, we will prevent 105,000 infections, save $12 million in healthcare costs, and avoid 1.4 million patient stay days. BASICS is designed to scale globally to prevent HAIs and save millions of lives.
Charity, fund, non-governmental organization, religious institution, school, or other entity
Organizations may provide budget and employee data based on this proposal or the organization as a whole. For more information on this proposal or organization, please email us.
Accomplishments
Over the past year, the BASICS team has focused on implementing configurations of the concept—incorporating some components into COVID-19 response projects—in a number of countries.
In Guatemala, for example, we implemented the Clean Clinic Approach, BASICS’ main component, in 40 Health Care Facilities (HCF). That single implementation led the government of Guatemala to adopt the approach as part of the country's national health strategy. Our ambition is to build on that pilot and others, and ensure we collect reliable impact data.
Another of our objectives is to secure funding for additional basic infrastructure support and for the addition of Teach Clean, a program that will help the BASICS team evaluate the results of the Clean Clinic Approach. We have similar projects running in Sierra Leone, Bangladesh, and Niger. The levels of investment required to expand these pilots into the full BASICS approach range from $1 million to $2.8 million.
