The United Nations agency recently estimated that as many as 1.4 million people around the world, at any given moment, are sick from illnesses they contracted at a hospital as a direct result of nurses and doctors going from patient to patient without washing their hands in between. Wow! That seems like the simplest thing a healthcare person has to do everyday, but evidently they aren’t doing it consistently.
The World Health Organization (WHO) is recommending the use of alcohol-based hand cleaners for hospital staff. They say it’s faster and easier to use than soap and water, and think it will end up saving lives because it’s more convenient than stopping at the sink between every patient.
This is no small deal, as up to 10 percent of all people with a hospital-related illness end up dying as a result. And although health and safety are the first priorities, this effort can also help the hospitals because less sick patients means less money spent. I have to say that I prefer my nurse just washes her hands, but if she’s so busy she’s at risk of forgetting then I’ll take hand sanitizer over nothing any day.
Author by Rigel Gregg
