Face Masks and Hand Sanitizers
Hanadi Talal Ahmedah, Muhammad Riaz, Sagheer Ahmed, Marius Alexandru Moga in The Covid-19 Pandemic, 2023
Frequent use of sanitizers containing alcohol is prescribed by health experts to prevent microbe infections including coronavirus. But exposure of alcohol increased the risk of dermatitis. Excess use of sanitizers containing alcohol against pneumonia virus affected skin badly and made it vulnerable for other viral infections. Hand sanitizers are used in excess all over the world as disinfectant considering the risk of viral infections. Skin dullness and dryness caused by excessive application of alcohol-based sanitizers that affected the function of skin as well as skin barrier by increasing its permeability [214]. Dry skin increased the risk for viral and bacterial infection as it is quite easy for microbes to infect a person with damaged skin [214]. It is reported in literature that frequent exposure to alcoholic sanitizers increases viral infection risk. The outbreak of norovirus risk is also increase by excess use of alcohol-based products as reported in literature [116]. The correlation of alcohol containing sanitizers and norovirus outbreak was studied by arranging 160 care facilities. They were observed to apply hand sanitizers 6 times in comparison to soap/water, and 91 were countered positively, 73 were infected in these cases, and 29 were confirmed for norovirus [115].
Infection prevention and control
Nicola Neale, Joanne Sale in Developing Practical Nursing Skills, 2022
Loveday et al. (2014) reviewed hand-cleaning preparations. They concluded that, generally, washing hands effectively with soap and water removes transient microorganisms and renders hands socially clean, which is sufficient for most care activities. Antimicrobial soap is not required for the majority of healthcare activities but should be used when there is the potential for resident flora to cause infection i.e., surgical procedures. Some antiseptics such as chlorhexidine gluconate have a residual effect, which can be beneficial where it is desirable to have sustained suppression of the growth of microorganisms. Alcohol-based hand sanitisers come in many forms; rub, gel and foam and provide an effective way to rapidly clean the hands, reducing both transient and resident flora, particularly in those locations with limited access to clean water. However, alcohol-based products are rapidly inactivated in the presence of organic matter and so should not be used on visibly soiled hands, nor are they effective against spores, so should not be used when caring for individuals with C. difficile. Alcohol hand rubs have been shown to increase the frequency of hand hygiene and so improve hand hygiene compliance, particularly if located at the point of care (Wilson 2019).
Communicable diseases
Liam J. Donaldson, Paul D. Rutter in Donaldsons' Essential Public Health, 2017
Hand hygiene improvement is central to ensuring a clean and safe environment for patients and reducing healthcare infection (Figure 3.23). Hand-mediated transmission of microbes from one patient to another via healthcare workers can be interrupted through use of hand sanitizers or hand washing at the sink. Since the late 1990s, there has been a growing emphasis on hand hygiene at the point of care, and hand sanitizers (alcohol gels and rubs) have revolutionized hand hygiene improvement methodology, making it possible for healthcare workers to adhere more easily and effectively to the demands of hand hygiene policies. Hand sanitizers are not a panacea and should not be used on soiled hands or with certain microorganisms (including C. difficile). They act as a safety net for the myriad microbes that threaten patients in the hospital and have been demonstrated to dramatically increase the likelihood of maximum compliance and to reduce risk.
Multidrug-resistant Candida auris: an epidemiological review
Published in Expert Review of Anti-infective Therapy, 2020
Arunaloke Chakrabarti, Shreya Singh
There are reports of C. auris transmission within and across healthcare networks, especially in long term, high acuity care facilities of developing countries [81]. Biswal et al, studied the hand carriage of C. auris in healthcare workers and reported its role in intra-hospital transmission dynamics of this pathogen [28]. They also reported that using soap and water or hand rubs containing 0.5% chlorhexidine with/without alcohol (70%) were adequate for clearance of this yeast form the fingertips of colonized healthcare workers. The transient nasal colonization of a HCW was also reported in a previous outbreak in Europe [18]. Although transmission from healthcare workers has not been confirmed in other studies, the CDC recommends that the health care personnel must follow standard hand hygiene practices while caring for a patients with C. auris [82]. This includes using alcohol based hand sanitizers (for not visibly soiled) and washing with soap and water (for visibly soiled) hands. The use of surgical masks, long sleeved gowns and gloves should be considered for preventing colonization of the HCW handling patients positive for C. auris [83]. When possible, affected patients should be placed in single rooms. In shared rooms, spatial separation must be maintained between roommates (3 feet) with use of privacy curtains with appropriate cleaning and disinfection of any shared equipment and environmental surfaces.
Infection Prevention: 2020 Review and Update for Neurodiagnostic Technologists
Published in The Neurodiagnostic Journal, 2020
Anna M. Bonner, Petra Davidson
By federal law per the BBP Standard, employers must provide sinks with soap and running water which are readily accessible to health-care employees (OSHA 2012). If soap and water are not available, an appropriate antiseptic hand cleanser or antiseptic towelettes (i.e., must be a minimum of 60% alcohol-based) must be provided and must be used. It is important to note that when antiseptic solutions are used, hands must still be washed with soap and running water as soon as they are available. It is also important to note that a recent study has shown hand sanitizer solutions to be ineffective in deactivating the Influenza-A virus unless the solution is used for full four minutes or more (Hirose et al. 2019). While the CDC and WHO both officially recommend the use of sanitizer for good hand hygiene, Hirose et al. also demonstrated that handwashing with antibiotic soap was the best method against the Influenza-A virus, deactivating it within 30 s.
Rethinking risk communication in the hospital: infection prevention, risk perceptions, and lived experience
Published in Journal of Communication in Healthcare, 2022
Gabriela Capurro, Nisha Thampi
The abundance of hand sanitizer dispensers suggests that hands are particularly risky; and if not cleaned frequently, they are presumed filthy and carrying germs. Despite this, doctors and nurses comply with hand hygiene to various degrees, not always sharing similar levels of haptic anxiety. This is expressed in the following field note: Based on the number of wall Purell dispensers and signs telling to clean hands, you’d think that every surface in the ward is contaminated (…) However, no one seems terribly concerned (…) [the risk messages have] become part of the background and the risk is diffused. (Week 10, Day 3)While this behaviour could seem contradictory and even defiant of the abundant risk messages in the wards and protocols they have to adhere to, it suggests that doctors and nurses perform their own risk assessments for which they draw on both biomedical and experiential knowledge. This negotiated risk behaviour leads to various levels of compliance with IPAC protocols and sometimes to taking extra prevention measures not outlined in the protocols.