RubDock

The hand-rub dispenser at the room door, made smart: it counts every rub, knows when it will run empty, and reports rubs per room entry with no badges, cameras or names

A thin Dock screws into the dispenser's old wall anchors and the ward's own dispenser screws onto it, hanging on a load cell, so every rub shows up as about 1 g leaving the scale. A DoorTally stuck on the door jamb counts people in and out with a two-zone time-of-flight sensor. The ward gateway reports rubs per room entry by unit and shift and sends a refill list before dispensers run empty. It counts and reports only: it does not prove hands were cleaned and makes no infection claim.

Who buys it

First: infection prevention teams at US hospitals meeting Leapfrog's standard of 200 hand hygiene opportunities per unit per month, where about 90% still use human observers. Then: care homes that must audit hand hygiene and cannot afford badge systems. Today they pay for auditor time or about $450-650 per bed per year for electronic monitoring.

Why it pays

Covert observers measured 50% compliance where hospitals' own auditors reported 84%, so a full count is worth more than 200 watched opportunities. RubDock targets about $48 a year in fees per room against $450-650 per bed per year for electronic systems (est.), and turns empty dispensers, the most common dispenser fault, into a planned refill list.

Target price

$179 per room kit (Dock + DoorTally) + $4/room/month; Dock alone $99 for refill alerts (target)

First-minute wow

The unit report on Monday: 9,300 room entries and 5,100 rubs at the door last week, night shift at 41%, and three dispensers that sat empty all weekend, with no badge on anyone and no camera in the corridor.