Global hand washing day is celebrated to increase the awareness that how important this habit is in preventing transmission of intestinal and respiratory disease particularly diarrhea and common cold.
Our hands are good carrier for transmission of germs from one person to another via hand shaking, via touching different objects. Health care workers are more exposed to microbes than anyone else.
To increase the awareness of the day, at school different activities are arranged. Students do the practice of washing hand in proper way and teachers explained them about the importance of hand hygiene.
WHEN SHOULD BE HAND WASHED
Encourage the children to wash hand with soap and water. It will remove all dirt and germs from your hand but don’t use towel after washing hand especially when you’re going to eat something. The reason is that when you dry your hands with towel then the germs from the towel will stick to your hands and from your hand, they will enter into GI tract and cause different diseases.
After finishing the meal wash up your hand again so it removes the oil or grease from your hand which can be a good medium for microbial growth.
Above mentioned way for washing hand is Sunnat method of our beloved Prophet HAZRAT MUHAMMAD (peace be upon him)
Always encourage children to wash hand after using toilet. It will help in stopping fecal oral transmission of germs.
Ask the children to wash hand after playing the game.
Before and after cooking food wash hand.
When you blow your nose, sneeze, cough, the germs will stick to your hand and can be transmitted to others.
IMPORTANCE OF HAND HYGIENE
Hand hygiene at school prevent you to miss any class.
Hand hygiene at home keep your family healthy and you will not miss work place.
Through hand washing harmful bacteria and viruses wash off and you will prevent from fecal oral transmission of germs and from seasonal flu and cold.
IMPORTANCE OF HAND HYGIENE FOR HEALTH CARE WORKERS
Health care workers are the most exposed to microbes than anyone else. Despite the fact, they put on gloves during procedures but they should be more focused towards washing hand habits. They should wash their hand properly for at least 20 seconds. Use of hand sanitizer is the most effective in hospital setting to wash hand. It’s killed most of bacteria from your hand but it’s not effective against clostridium difficile (responsible for diarrhea).
TECHNIQUE FOR HAND WASHING
There are 7 steps to wash hands as follows,
1. Wet your hand with water
2. Apply enough soap and rub palm together.
3. Rub the back of hands.
4. Interlink your fingers.
5. Cup your fingers.
6. Clean your thumb.
7. Rub your palm with fingers and wash up.
WHAT SHOULD DO WHEN WATER IS NOT AVAILABLE?
Hand sanitizer is best option, when we don’t have access to water. Hand sanitizer is available in different portable travel sizes and convenient to use.
TYPES OF SKIN FLORA
1. Skin FLORA or skin microbiota are normal microbes present on outer most layer of skin i.e., epidermis. They are nonpathogenic and offer benefit. They prevent colonization of pathogenic bacteria on the skin. They are also called as RESIDUAL FLORA.
2. TRANSIENT FLORA are pathogenic FLORA. They can infect the skin but if hands are properly washed, this transient FLORA easily wipe off.
ARE ANTIBACTERIAL SOAPS ARE THE MOST EFFECTIVE THAN SOAP AND WATER?
There are a lot of products which contain antibacterial agent including soaps, hand sanitizer, lotion and spray.
There’s no such evidence that anti-bacterial soaps are more effective in preventing illness than water and soap.
Antibacterial soaps kills both nonpathogenic and pathogenic bacteria because they are nonselective.
Antibacterial soaps are costly as compared to regular soap and are not effective against viruses responsible for cold and flu.
WHO calls it “threat to global health security” because antibacterial soaps have potential to create antibiotic resistant bacteria which interfere with collective effort of controlling and treating infection.
1. Skin FLORA or skin microbiota are normal microbes present on outer most layer of skin i.e., epidermis. They are nonpathogenic and offer benefit. They prevent colonization of pathogenic bacteria on the skin. They are also called as RESIDUAL FLORA.
2. TRANSIENT FLORA are pathogenic FLORA. They can infect the skin but if hands are properly washed, this transient FLORA easily wipe off.
ARE ANTIBACTERIAL SOAPS ARE THE MOST EFFECTIVE THAN SOAP AND WATER?
There are a lot of products which contain antibacterial agent including soaps, hand sanitizer, lotion and spray.
There’s no such evidence that anti-bacterial soaps are more effective in preventing illness than water and soap.
Antibacterial soaps kills both nonpathogenic and pathogenic bacteria because they are non-selective.
Antibacterial soaps are costly as compared to regular soap and are not effective against viruses responsible for cold and flu.
WHO calls it “threat to global health security” because antibacterial soaps have potential to create antibiotic resistant bacteria which interfere with collective effort of controlling and treating infection. Let’s follow theme of this year UNITE FOR UNIVERSAL HAND HYGIENE. Through collective efforts, practice hand washing habit everywhere and minimizes the risk of disease.