Handwashing 101

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Handwashing 101

• J Fairbanks

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The Cold Hard Facts

• 91 of adults say they wash their hands when they
  use the restroom
• Only 83 actually do! CDC
• According to the United States Department of
  Health and Human Services Centers for Disease
  Control and Prevention, hand washing or use of
  alcohol-based hand rubs has been shown to reduce
  overall infection rates

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The Cold Hard Facts

• The Centers for Disease Control maintains that
  good hand hygiene is the simplest, most effective
  measure for preventing nosocomial infections
• Nosocomial infections Infections that are the
  result of treatment in a hospital of healthcare
  service unit.

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Nosocomial Infections

• Aprpoximately 10 of American hospital patients
  (about 2 million every year) acquire a clinically
  significant nosocomial infection

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Nosocomial Infection Why?

• Nosocomial infections are the result of three
  factors occurring in tandem
• high prevalence of pathogens
• high prevalence of compromised hosts
• efficient mechanisms of transmission from patient
  to patient
• These three factors lead not just to a higher
  likelihood of transmission of pathogens within
  hospitals, but potentially to an evolution of
  enhanced disease -causing potential among
  microorganisms present within hospitals

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So How do you wash your hands?

• Do you use soap?
• Do you wash for at least 20-30 seconds?
• How do you turn the water on/off?
• Is your soap antibacterial or bactericidal?
• Do you use alcohol based cleaners?
• How do you dry your hands?

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CDC Guidelines

• Wet your hands with clean running water and apply
  soap. Use warm water if it is available.
• Rub hands together to make a lather and scrub all
  surfaces.
• Continue rubbing hands for 20 seconds. Need a
  timer? Hum the "Happy Birthday" song from
  beginning to end twice.
• Rinse hands well under running water.
• Dry your hands using a paper towel or air dryer.
  If possible, use your paper towel to turn off the
  faucet.

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Alcohol Based Cleansers

• Apply product to the palm of one hand, using the
  amount of product indicated on the label.
• Rub hands together.
• Rub the product over all surfaces of hands and
  fingers until hands are dry.

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Types of Microbes

• In 1938, bacteria recovered from the hands were
  divided into two categories transient and
  resident (14). Transient flora, which colonize
  the superficial layers of the skin, are more
  amenable to removal by routine handwashing

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• Transient flora are the organisms most frequently
  associated with health-careassociated
  infections.
• Resident flora, which are attached to deeper
  layers of the skin, are more resistant to
  removal.
• The hands of HCWs may become persistently
  colonized with pathogenic flora (e.g., S.
  aureus), gram negative bacilli, or yeast.

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• The primary function of the skin is to reduce
  water loss, provide protection against abrasive
  action and microorganisms, and act as a
  permeability barrier to the environment.

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Some Terms to Know

• Alcohol-based hand rub. An alcohol-containing
  preparation designed for application to the hands
  for reducing the number of viable microorganisms
  on the hands. In the United States, such
  preparations usually contain 6095 ethanol or
  isopropanol.
• Antimicrobial soap. Soap (i.e., detergent)
  containing an antiseptic agent.

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• Antiseptic agent. Antimicrobial substances that
  are applied to the skin to reduce the number of
  microbial flora. Examples include alcohols,
  chlorhexidine, chlorine, hexachlorophene, iodine,
  chloroxylenol (PCMX), quaternary ammonium
  compounds, and triclosan.
• Antiseptic handwash. Washing hands with water and
  soap or other detergents containing an antiseptic
  agent.

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• Handwashing. Washing hands with plain (i.e.,
  non-antimicrobial) soap and water
• Plain soap. Plain soap refers to detergents that
  do not contain antimicrobial agents or contain
  low concentrations of antimicrobial agents that
  are effective solely as preservatives.
• Visibly soiled hands. Hands showing visible dirt
  or visibly contaminated with proteinaceous
  material, blood, or other body fluids (e.g.,
  fecal material or urine).

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