Hand Hygiene - Part l

Keep your hands clean

Hand hygiene is the single most important means of preventing the spread of infection.  The main purpose of hand hygiene is to remove micro-organisms or germs, which can be transferred on to food and cause illness.

Contamination of hands by germs occurs in three main ways:

• Faecal contamination following a visit to the toilet
• Contact with 'high risk' raw products like raw poultry and meat and dirty utensils
• Through skin diseases and infected cuts and abrasions on the hands.

When should you practise hand hygiene?

 Hands should be washed and dried after every event where contamination on hands that could lead to potential cross-contamination of food has occurred.  Cross-contamination occurs when food handlers with dirty or unhygienic hands touch clean food and utensils leaving germs on those items.

Hand hygiene must take place after the following activities:

• Visiting toilet
• Smoking
• Contact with infected or otherwise unsanitary areas of the body especially the skin, wounds or abrasions
• Blowing nose
• Using facial towel or handkerchief
• Contact with unclean equipment or work surfaces
• After handling raw food and or partially cooked meat or poultry
• Handling garbage
• Handling money
• On entry into the food preparation area

How do you wash your hands?

Extra time spent washing hands is important in reducing the transmission of bacteria to food.  The recommended time frame of washing hands with soap and warm water is 20 seconds.  Using a nailbrush to clean under each nail is recommended when washing hands at the start of work, after using the toilet and whenever significant debris that can contaminate food accumulates under nails.