Oct 18, 2024
Welcome back to UHC’s House Call on WDTV. Many diseases and conditions are spread by not washing your hands with soap and clean, running water. Tonight, an Infection Preventionist with United Hospital Center explains why.
I am Victoria Lott, MPH, MLS, CIC, Infection Preventionist, at United Hospital Center, and I am here to speak with you about the importance of hand washing.
1). Do I really need to wash my hands for 20 seconds?
Scientific studies show that you need to scrub for 20 seconds to remove harmful germs and chemicals from your hands. If you wash for a shorter time, you will not remove as many germs. Make sure to scrub all areas of your hands, including your palms, backs of your hands, between your fingers, your thumbs and under your fingernails.
2). How does handwashing with soap and water remove germs and chemicals?
Soap and water, worked into a lather, will trap and remove germs and chemicals from hands. Wetting your hands with clean water before applying soap helps you get a better lather than applying soap to dry hands. A good lather forms pockets called micelles that trap and remove germs, harmful chemicals, and dirt from your hands.
Lathering with soap and scrubbing your hands for 20 seconds is important to this process because these actions physically destroy germs and remove germs and chemicals from your skin. When you rinse your hands, you wash the germs and chemicals down the drain.
3). Should I use a paper towel to turn off the faucet after washing my hands?
When using public sinks, it is recommended to use a paper towel, your elbow or another hands-free way to turn off the faucet after washing your hands. This helps make sure germs aren’t getting back on to your hands after you’ve washed them.
This content was originally posted on the WDTV News website here.
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