At a certain point, increasing the number of alcohol-based hand rub dispensers is less important than their location in encouraging use, according to a study in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology.
In the 2009 study, conducted within a 10-room inpatient medical unit at a teaching hospital, researchers increased the number of dispensers in various locations between April and October. The number of uses were counted by monitors inside the dispensers.
The study began with 13 hand rub dispensers: one inside the door of each room and three in the hallway in high-use nursing areas. After 35 days, 10 hallway dispensers were added, which boosted patients' daily use by 26 percent. For the next five months, the researchers gradually increased the number of dispensers to 51.
The study showed that after the increase of activity with the initial addition of hallway dispensers, the number of uses leveled off even when further dispensers were added. The study suggested that after this threshold, placement of the dispensers may affect use more than their number does.
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