Thursday 28th Feb 2008: Wash your hands of them

I went on some training this morning which was fascinating: washing one’s hands.
There was a little bit of theory and background and then it was very practical – literally learning how to wash one’s hands thoroughly.
The background: a hospital is a heavily contaminated environment and the best possible means of preventing a hospital acquired infection is hand hygiene.
This was interesting for me not only because I work in a hospital, but while I don’t have face to face contact with patients, I do outside of the hospital have 1:1 contact with massage clients.
In our first practical we had to wash our hands the way we would usually clean them. We then had to place our hands under a light which showed how good or poor our wash had been. Now, I think I wash my hands well, (and the tutor said she had seen much much worse!) and I was stunned to see where dirt / germs could still be hiding!
We then learned the 6 steps to good hand washing – and my, what a difference.
If you’re interested in learning more look at www.washyourhandsofthem.com