While that daily cleaning of your facilities can keep infections at bay, it is not all you can do to maintain a healthy work environment. Making sure your facility is using proper protocols to maintain cleanliness includes thorough, consistent hand-washing techniques. We’ve got a few simple tips to help you learn to do it all over again.
The CDC has reported that more than 80 percent of illnesses can be transmitted by the hands, which is why practicing good hand hygiene throughout the day is so important. Whatever you do wash your hands.
Practicing good hand hygiene at key moments—which includes either handwashing with soap and water or using a well-formulated alcohol-based hand sanitizer when soap and water are not convenient—is important in keeping everyone healthy. Proper hand hygiene care is one of the best and simplest ways to remove germs, avoid getting sick, and prevent germs from spreading to others. This involves more than just splash-and-dash handwashing; following the proper technique for handwashing and hand sanitizing is just as important.
How to Wash Hands
The entire handwashing process should take at least 20 seconds. A good procedure is to:
- Wet hands with water.
- Apply enough soap to create a lather to cover all hand surfaces.
- Rub hands palm to palm.
- Carefully scrub fingers, the back and front of hands, and each thumb.
- Rinse hands with water.
- Gently dry hands with a clean paper towel.
How to Sanitize Hands
When it comes to hand sanitizing, the entire process should take approximately 15 seconds:
- Apply a dime-sized amount of an alcohol-based hand sanitizer, enough to cover all surfaces of your hands.
- Rub the sanitizer into the palms of your hands, fingers, back and front of hands, and thumbs.
- Continue rubbing hands together until hands are dry.
When to Wash and Sanitize Hands
Hand hygiene is one of the most important preventive measures we can take to reduce our risk of getting ill, and it is critical to remember to practice hand hygiene at key moments, which include:
- After using the bathroom
- After sneezing or coughing
- Before eating
- Before, during, and after food preparation
- Before and after caring for someone who is ill or spending time around someone who is sick
- After touching anything that is in a high-traffic area that may have been touched by many different hands, such as a grocery cart handle, a phone, or a handrail.
