Health care providers clean their hands many times a day to prevent transmission of germs – but did you know that the risk of spreading infections increases if the skin on your hands becomes damaged?

A few tips to help take good care of your hands:

The Alcohol Based Hand Rubs (ABHR) Microsan contains moisturizers and helps maintain better skin condition than soap and water.  Advantages include:

• Less drying (doesn’t wash away skin oils).
• Time saving (clean your hands while you walk or talk to your patient).
• Less skin damage from hot water and rubbing with paper towel.
• Contains protective emollients.

If you do need to use soap and water to meet Infection Control guidelines, there are ways to protect your hands:

• Use warm water – hot water increases dryness and is not more effective for cleaning hands.
• Wet your hands before applying soap – liquid soap can clog pores when applied to dry hands, and the amount of residue increases.
• Rinse well.
• Dry your hands well by patting them with a paper towel – rubbing and not drying completely can both increase irritation.

Gloves can be a useful tool if used properly.  Here are some suggestions to improve hand health when using gloves:

• After you perform hand hygiene, make sure hands are completely dry – pulling gloves onto wet hands can cause irritation.
• Remove gloves immediately after the task is finished (then perform hand hygiene).

When skin irritation does occur,

• Use the lotion after washing hands with soap and water.
• Even if you don’t use it every time you wash, try using it at the beginning and end of each shift, or during your breaks.
• Let the lotion sink in prior to washing your hands again.

Take care of your hands – so they can take care of you, your loved ones, and your patients and clients.