How to Wash Your Hands Properly

Is your hand washing routine up to scratch?
If not, you could be unknowingly spreading harmful bacteria.

Public toilets are a source of many different kinds of bacteria, some of which are pathogens that can spread disease. A thorough hand washing routine can prevent the spread of bacteria, but a quick rinse under the tap and a shake of the hands isn’t enough to prevent bacteria from spreading. Our hand washing checklist will ensure that you and your work colleagues are washing your hands thoroughly and helping to prevent diseases.

How to Correctly Wash Your Hands

There are five key steps that should be met during a proper hand washing routine: wetting your hands, lathering with soap, scrubbing, rinsing with water and drying your hands. Hands should be washed after every time you visit the bathroom, before eating food, after caring for someone who is unwell, after blowing your nose and so on.

Wet Your Hands

The first step to washing your hands properly is to wet your hands under clean, running water. While many people believe that warm water will kill germs, in fact only boiling water that has reached a temperature of 55℃ will have this effect. However, this temperature is too hot for skin to be exposed to without causing irritation. The temperature of the water should be comfortable for you and both warm and cold water are fine for washing your hands.

Lather With Soap

Next, you should use soap and create a lather by rubbing your hands together. To thoroughly clean your hands, make sure to lather the soap suds on the backs of your hands as well as in the palms, between the fingers and under the fingernails. Studies have shown that using soap when washing hands can result in a 40% reduction of digestive issues, compared to hand washers who only use water.

Scrub Your Hands

Once your hands are lathered up with soap, you should scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds. During this time you are scrubbing off microbes on your skin which can cause eye infections, skin irritation, digestive problems and even urinary tract infections.

Rinse Well

Once you’ve finished scrubbing your hands, rinse them well under clean, running water. Make sure that all the soap has been removed. You may choose to use a paper towel to turn off the tap as the faucet is a breeding ground for bacteria.

Dry Your Hands

When it comes to drying your hands, the most hygienic option is to use paper hand towels. Unlike air dryers, paper hand towels reduce the amount of bacteria on your palms and fingertips and prevent the spread of bacteria. When using paper hand towels, you should spend ten seconds doing so. If your only option is a hot air hand dryer, make sure to use it for at least forty seconds. Remember that bacteria spreads faster and further on wet skin, so drying your hands is very important.

For more information on the correct procedure for washing your hands, we recommend the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.

If you’re looking to optimise hand hygiene in your washrooms, Atlantic Hygiene offer a range of paper hand towels and other products.