Medical science continues with breakthroughs about the impact of germs and the importance of washing hands. Germs are everywhere and easily transmitted, but implementing a few new practices into your daily routine can slow the spread of even the worst illnesses currently going around. Handwashing requires 6 simple and effective steps: wet, lather, scrub, rinse, dry, and turn off the tap with a towel. In particular, washing before and after certain activities is one of the best ways to remove germs, avoid sickness for yourself and others.
Germs may be unavoidable, but not all germs are harmful. In fact, we actually need some of these germs to keep us healthy and help to strengthen our immune system. Some of these good germs are eliminated through handwashing, but most of them reside under a deeper layer of skin, where your body maintains the necessary levels of healthy germs. Bad germs, on the other hand, live on the outer surface of your skin, making them easy to remove. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), alcohol-based hand sanitizers are the best way to keep your hands clean and free of these bad germs when a sink and soap are unavailable.
Though there are other cleanliness methods, the CDC still stands by alcohol-based sanitizers as the best way to quickly cleanse hands. The antimicrobial activity of alcohols can be attributed to their ability to denature proteins, killing germs fast and in a different way than antibiotics or antivirals.
A common misunderstanding is that you only need to wash your hands when you can clearly see dirt, but this has no relevance on whether your hands are contaminated. Germs are present with or without dirt, which stresses the importance of washing hands.
If you don’t have access any alcohol-based sanitizers on you, however, soap and water is still a great alternative! It’s vital to clean all areas of your hands by washing them for more than 15 seconds, but also stresses the attention you give to handwashing. Make sure that every inch of your hands are washed, including often missed areas like thumbs, fingertips, and in between fingers. By doing all of this, you can make sure that all contaminates and germs are washed away. It’s important to remember that gloves do not guarantee cleanliness, and your hands can become dirty regardless. Germs will be passed along if gloves are compromised, so it is especially important to make sure your hands are thoroughly washed.
Implore everyone to use best hygiene practices in your healthcare facility with wellness signage from HealthcareSigns.com. Our Wash Your Hands sign shows the 6 different steps to handwashing in a simple graphic. Add this repositionable vinyl sign to your restroom mirrors to help remind everyone about proper handwashing protocols.
We at HealthcareSigns.com are ready and willing to assist you in addressing your wellness signage needs. Our signage complies with both ADA and CDC guidelines. Each sign is easily repositionable and suitable for interior use within your healthcare facility. Our signs are also covered by our unparalleled guarantees, including Life of the Building and ADA Compliance. Have any questions? Contact us at 877.714.6588 or emailus@healthcaresigns.com, and trust our sign experts at HealthcareSigns.com to help equip your healthcare facility! It is important to communicate best practices for handwashing, so order your Wash Your Hands signs today!
We also wanted to take a moment to thank all healthcare industry employees for your dedication, sacrifice, and commitment to your patients and residents during this unprecedented time. We are truly grateful for all that you are doing to protect the medically vulnerable.