Although there are plenty of best practices for hand hygiene in healthcare settings, there are also "worst practices" that should not become routine.
New expert guidance on hand hygiene, published in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, lays out the following four hand hygiene habits to avoid:
• Using hot water for hand washing, as it can irritate the skin
• Using alcohol-based hand rubs when hands are visibly soiled
• Using soaps with triclosan, as there is a lack of evidence that triclosan-containing soaps are more effective than hand sanitizers or soaps with chlorhexidine gluconate, and there are concerns with triclosan's impact on the environment
• Using the self-report method as the primary way of measuring hand hygiene compliance
More Articles on Hand Hygiene:
10 Expert-Recommended Hand Hygiene Practices
Patients Can 'Be The Difference' in Hand Hygiene Efforts