Healthcare associated infections (HAIs), caused by pathogens such as MRSA, multi-drug-resistant coliforms, norovirus, and Clostridium difficile, are a substantial problem in developed and developing countries around the world  and within the NHS. In April 2014, the WHO produced a global map  of antimicrobial resistance, warning that a ‘post-antibiotic’ world could soon become a reality and in May 2014 there was a warning that ‘without an international commitment to tackle the issue, the world faces a future in which simple infections that have been treatable for decades become deadly diseases’ . In addition to the distress caused to patients who acquire a hospital pathogen, the cost of HAIs for acute services in NHS Scotland was estimated in the last national prevalence survey at £183 million . Educational interventions are a key component in the battle against HAIs, specifically areas such as: the transmission of infection; hand hygiene; use of personal protective equipment; and maintenance of a clean environment and clean equipment . However, a particular challenge underlying attempts to explain and instruct in these areas is that the pathogens responsible for HAIs are invisible to the naked eye.
 Allegranzi, B., Nejad, S.B., Combescure, C., Graafmans, W., Attar, H., Donaldson, L. and Pittet, D., 2011. Burden of endemic health-care-associated infection in developing countries: systematic review and meta-analysis. The Lancet, 377(9761), pp.228–241.
 WHO, 2014. Antimicrobial Resistance: Global Report on Surveillance 2014.
 Woolhouse, M. and Farrar, J., 2014. Policy: An intergovernmental panel on antimicrobial resistance. Nature, 509(7502), pp.555–557.
 Health Protection Scotland, 2007. NHS Scotland National HAI Prevalence Survey. [online] Available at: www.documents.hps.scot.nhs.uk/hai/sshaip/publications/national-prevalence-study/report/full-report.pdf
 NHS Education for Scotland, 2014. Introduction to cleanliness champions. [online] Retrieved May 5, 2014, from www.nes.scot.nhs.uk/education-and-training/by-theme-initiative/healthcareassociated-infections/educational-programmes/cleanliness-champions.aspx