As you make your rounds, it is important to maintain your personal hygiene throughout the day. This includes frequent handwashing or alcohol-based hand sanitizer if soap and water are unavailable. Handwashing is the most important thing you can do to prevent the transmission of disease or pathogens.
You must wash your hands:
- after any contact with blood, body fluids, and contaminated material
- after removing gloves
- before and after using the toilet
- before leaving the laboratory
- before eating, drinking, or smoking
- before manipulating contact lenses
Proper handwashing is accomplished by using soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds before thoroughly rinsing and drying on a paper towel. If you are unsure how long 20 seconds is, an easy-to-remember trick is to hum the Happy Birthday song from beginning to end twice.
Using a liquid, alcohol-based hand sanitizer is also an acceptable method of hand hygiene. Hand sanitizers destroy more germs than soap and water. However, only soap and water should be used if your hands are visibly dirty or contaminated.
Also, hand sanitizers may not be substituted for soap when exposure to specimens containing Clostridioides difficile, more commonly referred to as "C. diff," is possible.
