Staying Healthy with Good Hand Hygiene

If you’ve been to Evergreen Hospital recently, you’ve noticed the “Clean Zone” posters in our lobbies and on our elevators. They are there to remind all of us to practice the best and most important way of preventing infection and its transmission – washing our hands.

Follow our hand hygiene practices at home to prevent the spread of germs and help keep your family healthy.

Wash your hands before:

• preparing food
• eating
• treating wounds or giving medicine
• touching an injured or sick person
• inserting or removing contact lenses

Wash your hands after:

• preparing food
• using the toilet
• changing a diaper
• touching an animal, animal toys, leashes, or waste
• blowing your nose
• coughing or sneezing into your hands
• treating wounds
• touching an injured or sick person
• handling garbage or anything else that could be contaminated

What’s the best way to keep hands clean?

• Wet your hands with running water.
• Apply soap—whether liquid, bar or powdered.
• Rub your hands vigorously about 10 times or for 20 seconds, approximately the time it takes you to sing “Happy Birthday” twice. Rub all the way back to your wrists and out to the tips of your fingers.
• Rinse your hands under the running water.
• Dry your hands thoroughly with a clean towel, air dryer or disposable towel.