ECJ EUROPEAN Cleaning Journal

Awareness regarding hand washing and hygienic practices is low among doctors and nurses in India, according to a study by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and Lady Hardinge Medical College (LHMC).

The study found that a majority of doctors still believe cleaning hands with soap and water is the best way of ensuring hygiene even though the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends alcohol-based hand rub for hand cleansing due to its broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity.

Narendra Saini, member of the Delhi Medical Council and Infection Control Speciality at Max Pushpanjali Hospital, said: "Repeated hand washing is very important in stopping the transmission of infection or acquiring infection. Clean hands save lives.

"Infection enters our body through mouth, nose or through the eyes all of which are touched by hands. Infection organisms can survive for more than eight hours if hands are not washed. Doctors and health care workers should repeatedly wash their hands," Saini added.

A doctor at AIIMS said alcohol-based rubs should be made available freely at hospitals. "Availability of resources is important here. There has to be arrangements for hand washing or alcohol-based hand rub should be made available easily to a doctor after he deals with one patient and before he starts dealing with another.

"Patients' relatives should also clean their hands before and after visiting so as to check spread of infection," the doctor added.

The study was published in the latest issue of International Journal of Pharma Research and Health Sciences, and covered over 100 doctors and nurses from March 2015 to May 2015.