Washing your hands

Those who know me KNOW that I am a pain when it comes to cleaning. I insist that students use barbacide before they sit down at their table in the morning. Then again whenever they change tasks. The number one comment I get when they go out to the clinic floor is how clean they are about everything. It is my thought that one can not be too clean but they can be (and often are) not clean enough. I was reading today's headline news stories and with the recent outbreak of flu there is a story about how to wash ones hands. It is recommended that liquid antibacterial soap is used and that the hands are washed long enough to sing the Alphabet song twice (or Twinkly twinkle little star if you prefer). After washing PLEASE use a fresh paper towel and turn the water off with the towel when finished. If no towel is nearby allowing the hands to air dry seems to me a much better choice than using the pants leg I see so many students using. Where I work they recently installed hot air blowers to dry the hands. These neat little things work really well and cut down on the dirty toweling left behind for someone to clear away. Folks, PLEASE wash your hands and often. This flu and so many other things can be fought off with good hygiene. It may take an extra effort and bit of time but you're worth it.