Guide to clean hands

Hand cleaning (also called Hand Hygiene) is one of the best ways you and your healthcare team can prevent germs from spreading. Your health care team works hard to keep their hands and environment clean. They are committed to giving you clean, safe care.

We encourage you to:

• Ask staff about hand hygiene (hand cleaning) practices
• Participate in hand hygiene yourself
• Ask family and visitors to clean their hands when they visit you
• Ask sick family or visitors to stay home

How to clean your hands

It only takes 20 seconds to kill germs on our hands that can cause infections. You can use soap and water or hand sanitizer (alcohol-based hand rub) to clean your hands.

Soap and water

It is best to use soap and water when your hands look or feel dirty, before you eat or prepare food and after using the bathroom.

1. Roll up long sleeves and push up your watch, bracelet and other items on your wrist
2. Wet hands with warm water
3. Put enough liquid soap on your hands to cover them
4. Rub the soap all over the surface of your hands and wrists
5. Wash and scrub your hands for at least 15 seconds
6. Dry hands with paper towels
7. Use towels to turn off sink faucets and open door
8. Throw paper towels in waste bin

Hand sanitizer or alcohol-based hand rub

It is best to use hand sanitizer or alcohol-based hand rub when you go into or leave a patient or resident room, unit or healthcare facility as long as your hands do not look or feel dirty.

1. Use on dry hands
2. Roll up long sleeves and push up your watch, bracelet and other items on your wrist
3. Add a palm-sized amount of hand sanitizer to your hands
4. Rub the sanitizer all over the surfaces of your hands and wrists
5. Keep rubbing until your hands are completely dry (at least 20 seconds)

When to clean your hands

Everyone

• Before and after touching wounds and devices
• Before eating, drinking, taking medications and touching your eyes, nose or mouth
• After using the washroom, blowing your nose or coughing or sneezing onto your hands
• When entering or leaving your room or interacting with visitors

Members of your health care team

• Before contact with you/your room space
• Before putting on gloves or doing procedures
• After contact with blood and bodily fluids and taking off gloves
• When exiting your room/space