Health-care workers have new hand-washing guidelines. Here’s how you can apply them – CTV
Feb. 9, 2023
Beyond the usual soap, water and paper towel treatment, hand hygiene has typically been the domain of health-care professionals and food and beverage workers.
However, the COVID-19 pandemic served as a reminder for households around the world about the importance of thorough, multi-step hand washing. The way respiratory viruses have circulated this winter following the return to in-person learning and pre-pandemic social activities, most Canadians could probably benefit from a refresher.
Fortunately, the standard essential practices for hand hygiene in health-care settings have just received an update, thanks to a collaboration between five major U.S.-based medical organizations.
The latest recommendations – entitled “Strategies to Prevent Healthcare-Associated Infections through Hand Hygiene: 2022 Update” – emphasize the importance of healthy skin and nails and easy access to alcohol-based hand sanitizers for preventing the spread of infectious germs.
