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Washing hands must be done for at least 30 seconds with hot water in order to eliminate 50-60% of the germs. The problem is no one
EVER washes for thirty seconds…Go ahead and try. Ready? One one thousand, two one thousand, three one thousand, four one thousand…
It is impossible to do that when you are in contact with 30-50 patients per day. Even if you spent half your day washing your hands
they would be cracked, bleeding and full of eczema by the end of the week. A five second hand wash gets rid of 10-15% of germs so to
help the “regimen” Healthcare settings instituted the use of alcohol to kill germs and require that after each patient contact and
subsequent hand washing an application of alcohol gel be used to get the germ kill up to 99%. That kind of killing efficiency is
fantastic and just what is needed, however alcohol is caustic, flammable and detrimental to the skin it cleans off your hands natural
oils and de-fats your fingers. It also has no persistence and stops killing germs the second that it has evaporated. With both the
hand washing and use of alcohol germs didn’t stand a chance!
A major breakthrough in healthcare and for the first time ever patients were very well protected from the spread of germs from hand
to mouth. The problem is that the healthcare professionals paid the price, and their skin has suffered. So much so that in reality the
regimen is compromised in various ways. Hands are washed on average for 5 seconds, alcohol is then used and the epidermis has thousands
of tiny dry cracks created by the soap and alcohol. These cracks are perfect for germs to hide and proliferate in. To help ease the
dryness a coating of lotion is put on and rubbed into every little crack. Lotion is full of bacteria and is and ideal breeding ground
for viruses.
Lotions also utilize many ingredients that compromise latex gloves by causing tiny microscopic holes to develop. Then the latex glove
is put on the cracked, soap and alcohol covered hand creating a perfect incubator for bacteria and viruses. A compromised and ineffective
cycle that literally is the cause of thousands of deaths each year. Have you ever heard of someone checking into the hospital because of
appendicitis and dying of pneumonia, or influenza, or hepatitis, or tuberculosis…the list is lengthy. |
