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Wash Hands To Prevent Spread of Skin Infections

 

Good hand hygiene, including correct hand-washing technique, is the single most important practice in reducing the spread of skin infections, says a position statement by the National Athletic Trainers' Association on preventing, recognizing and treating skin infections in athletics, including community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA).  Child washing hands

Proper hand-washing technique is as follows:

  1. Wet the hands
  2. Apply the amount of antimicrobial liquid soap (not bar) recommended by the soap's manufacturer
  3. Rub the hands together vigorously for at least 15 second
  4. Rinse the hands with water
  5. Dry hands thoroughly with a disposable towel.

Source: National Athletic Trainers' Association Position Statement: Skin Diseases, Journal of Athletic Training 2010; 45(4): 411-428, citing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Guideline for hand hygiene in health-care settings: recommendations of the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee and the HICPAC/SHEA/APIC/IDSA Hand Hygiene Task Force, MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2002; 51(RR-16):1-45.