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| Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net Cory Couillard |
Hundreds
of millions of patients around the world die or are considerably affected by
diseases such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, also known as
MRSA, and other severe infections that occur during patient care in healthcare
facilities.
Experts
agree that simple hand washing and cleanliness techniques can significantly
lessen the global disease burden and promote good health. Hand washing is a routine activity that every
living individual needs to implement into his or her everyday lives – not just
healthcare workers.
Embedding
hand hygiene promotional activities as a national priority is the key according
to the World Health Organization (WHO). Specific efforts have been made to
support countries with large-scale activities to promote hand hygiene within
healthcare and beyond.
The WHO
has created a “SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands” campaign that is set for 5 May
2013. This global movement is designed
to improve hand hygiene education, awareness and to provide sustainable
solutions to healthcare professionals that will help reduce the burden of
hygiene-related patient disease.
Registrations
are particularly encouraged from countries with zero or low numbers of
registrations. The “SAVE LIVES: Clean
Your Hands” campaign aims to be as inclusive of everyone as possible.
5 May
2013 falls on a Sunday, a rest day for most, but not for all. Activities have
always been promoted as 'on or around 5 May' to ensure all health-care workers
have the opportunity to take part in the hand hygiene awareness-raising
activities.
The first global patient safety challenge
The WHO
program “Clean Care is Safer Care” looks to ensure that infection control is
acknowledged universally as an essential basis towards patient safety that supports
the reduction of healthcare-associated infections and their potential
life-threatening consequences.
“As of
May 2012, over 15 000 health-care facilities have committed to improve hand
hygiene. This represents approximately 10 million health-care workers, and more
than 3.7 patient-beds, an unprecedented achievement” according to the WHO.
“Our
efforts and those of health-care workers in these facilities must now be
directed towards sustaining improvements and thereby reducing healthcare-associated
infections and patient suffering”, says Professor Didier Pittet, Director,
Infection Control Programme, University of Geneva Hospitals and Faculty of
Medicine.
Healthcare starts with home care
A recent
study published in the American Journal of Infection Control demonstrated that
hand washing could prevent disease transmission in the household setting as
well. Previous studies mainly focused on the importance of hand washing and
workers in the food and health industries.
Researchers
tested toilet in homes where at least one person had been diagnosed with
salmonella – a common cause of food poisoning. They found that toilets could remain
contaminated for up to three weeks after its confirmed presence. This indicates
that the infection could be transmitted long-term without proper toilet
cleaning and hand hygiene techniques.
A similar
study demonstrated how a virus could be transmitted through touching a
contaminated door handle and shaking hands with others. Test results confirmed that the virus could
be spread up to six additional people.
The
authors of the study commented that people should be aware of the surfaces that
are touched by a large number of people such as faucets, toilet flush handles
and doorknobs. Society cannot avoid
these items and demonstrates the importance of something that we can
control—hand washing.
Other
common forms of germ transmission include coughing and sneezing. The direct spray into the air or into one’s
hands can greatly facilitate the spread of bacteria and viruses alike. Also be aware of other activities such as
changing diapers, touching trashcans and any surface that may have come in
contact with waste or food products.
Clean hands protect against infection
Clean
your hands regularly.
Wash your
hands with soap and water. Dry them thoroughly.
Use
alcohol-based hand rub if you don’t have immediate access to soap and water.
How to wash your hands
Washing
one’s hands thoroughly starts with warm or cold water and then applying soap. Antibacterial
soap is not needed as any soap facilitates cleanliness. Create lather by rubbing
one’s hands together and scrub the backs of the hands, wrists, between fingers and
under/around every nail bed.
The most
common hand-washing mistake is not washing one’s hands long enough.
Keep
scrubbing all areas of the hands and wrists for a minimum of 40 to 60 seconds.
Creating a routine is the most effective way of ensuring that all areas are
properly cleaned. A fun, known way of
washing one’s hands effectively is thinking of a song while washing one’s hands.
This will help improve the overall time of washing.
It is
important to rinse off any additional soap and dry hands with a paper towel, a
clean hand towel or dry hands with an air drier if available. It is also recommended to turn off the faucet
with the towel as that can prevent recontamination of one’s hands.
Alcohol
wipes or hand sanitizers are very effective if soap and water are not readily
available. Hand sanitizers contain
alcohol and will prevent one from needing a hand towel. Simply rubbing one’s
hands together will dry them sufficiently. The downside is that they are expensive
and the cost can limit widespread use.
Children are at greatest risk
We all
know that kids don't listen very well when you tell them to wash their hands
before eating, after using the bathroom, or when they come inside from playing.
Regardless, it's an important continual message that can reduce future minor
and serious illnesses.
Hand
washing is the best way to prevent germs from spreading to other children and
eventually the whole family as well. It
is also the first line of defense against the spread of many other common
illnesses such as the common cold and flu or even more serious illnesses such
as meningitis, hepatitis A, and most types of infectious diarrhea.
Getting involved
Hand
hygiene is just as important, if not more, for the general public compared to healthcare
professionals. The “SAVE LIVES: Clean
Your Hands” WHO campaign is directed towards healthcare professionals but we
must not forget that our daily personal choices will impact our health well before
the need of one.
Healthy
habits are exactly that, habits. Create
a routine of washing one’s hands before, during and after activities that are
known to infest them. Minimize possible
exposures and transmissions by understanding the most common culprits of the
problem.
You can
do your part by educating friends, family members and loved ones on how to reduce
the risk of transmission. If you’re a healthcare professional, go to the
following site if you’d like to participate in the 5 May 2013 event.
The
purpose of this article is to provide a healthcare professional adequate time
to plan and implement the program and for improved public health.
Dr. Cory
Couillard is an international healthcare speaker and columnist for numerous
newspapers, magazines, websites and publications throughout the world. He works
in collaboration with the World Health Organization's goals of disease
prevention and global healthcare education. Views do not necessarily reflect
endorsement.
Email:
drcorycouillard@gmail.com
Facebook: Dr Cory Couillard
Twitter: DrCoryCouillard
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