Hand hygiene

Clean hands are essential to reducing infections, at home and when your child is in the hospital. Hand hygiene is the simplest and most effective way to keep your child healthy. While there are many national and international recommendations on hand hygiene for the hospital setting, there is very little information for care at home, especially for children. See www.handhygiene.ca for more information on why handwashing is important, antimicrobial resistance and other related topics.

Find here:

When to clean your hands
When to clean your child’s hands
Alcohol based hand rub versus soap and water
How to handrub
How to handwash

When to clean your hands

In general, clean your hands as part of your routine preparation before and after providing any type of care to your child. Also clean your hands before and after:

using the washroom,
preparing food,
eating.

Get into the habit of cleaning your hands as you enter your home and encourage family members and caregivers to do the same.

When to clean your child’s hands

Depending upon the age and abilities of your child, encourage your child to develop the healthy habit of regular hand cleaning. Ensure that your child’s hands are clean before and after:

using the washroom,
eating,
playing with toys, inside and outside your home,
leaving and returning home,
participating in part of the care (for example, helping to hold a piece of equipment).

Alcohol based handrubs versus soap and water

Both alcohol based handrubs, also called hand sanitizers and traditional soap and water are effective ways to clean your hands. The most important part of hand hygiene is to develop the habit of cleaning your hands. Compared to soap and water, alcohol based handrubs are better at removing bacteria (germs) from your hands, work faster and usually cause less skin irritation. Alcohol based handrubs can be convenient also, as you do not need to have access to running water or paper towels.

If your hands (or your child’s hands) are visibly dirty, then use soap and water, using the methods shown below. Use soap and water to clean your hands before and after providing any care involving possible contact with urine, stool, blood or any other body fluids.

How to handrub

Remove jewelry.

Apply a palmful of sanitizer.

Rub hands palm to palm.

Rub each palm over the back of the other hand.

Interlace your fingers and rub.

As you rub, your hands will dry.

How to handwash

Remove jewelry.

Scrub well with soap for at least 20 seconds.

Rinse.

Dry your hands with a clean disposable towel,
and then shut off the tap using the towel.

https://complexcareathomeforchildren.com/prepare-your-home/hand-hygiene/

Disclaimer of Liability: By using this site, you acknowledge that you have read this disclaimer and agree to all of its terms. Before making any decisions regarding your health or if you have any medical questions, you should first consult a physician or qualified health care professional who can provide recommendations tailored to your specific needs. The information published on this site does not constitute a recommendation for treatment (preventive or curative), a prescription or a diagnosis and is not a substitute for the advice of a physician or qualified health professional.

As medical and technical knowledge is constantly evolving, the content of this site is made available for information purposes only. The contributors to this site, including clinical experts in pediatrics from across Quebec, make every effort to ensure that the information made available on this site is as accurate and reliable as possible, without guaranteeing the completeness or total absence of error of its content. The opinions contained in this site are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and are not binding on the contributors to this site. These opinions do not necessarily reflect the official viewpoint of the organizations mentioned, nor that of their directors or representatives. The contributors to this site cannot and will not assume any responsibility for the use of the published content or for the information otherwise accessible through any link or reference source. Any quotation or reference to a source external to this site is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an endorsement or claim, express or implied, regarding the content or validity of the information obtained from that external source.

All rights reserved: The contents of this site may not be reproduced or disseminated, in whole or in part, in any manner or by any means, electronic, mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or otherwise, or stored in a retrieval system of any kind that is not limited to private use, without the prior written permission of the copyright holder.