Handwashing
April 2008

UK: E.coli alert school bans handshake tradition
22.apr.08
The Portsmouth News
http://www.portsmouth.co.uk/news/Ecoli-alert-school-bans-handshake.4005776.jp
Barfblog Post
Handshakes have been banned at a public school after a student fell ill with E. coli O157.
The traditional handshaking ceremony that takes place after assemblies at Bedales School in Steep, near Petersfield, has been temporarily scrapped amid fears it could spread infection.
Headteacher Keith Budge was cited as saying he made the decision after being told on Sunday that a 15-year-old student had been diagnosed with E. coli O157, adding, "We have already checked hygiene arrangements across the school and will be advising all staff and students to follow good hygiene practice. The school's traditional handshaking ceremony after assembly has been suspended until we get the all-clear."
The Health Protection Agency was cited as saying the teenager is not thought to have contracted the infection at school and the risk of it spreading is low.

MASSACHUSETTS: Milford regional kicks off handwashing campaign to fight germs
13.apr.08
The Milford Daily News
Jennifer Lord
http://www.milforddailynews.com/homepage/x623553993
MILFORD--Kim Knox sings "Happy Birthday" to herself several times a day.
She can't help it. She knows what dangers lurk if she veers from her routine.
It's not that Knox is superstitious - far from it. Knox, the infection control coordinator for Milford Regional Medical Center and a registered nurse, knows all about the germs that can lurk on improperly washed hands. As she soaps her hands, she sings "Happy Birthday" twice through to ensure that she is doing a thorough job.
"Hand washing is one of the least sophisticated things you can do to lower your risk of infection, but it's also the most effective," Knox said. "It protects you and it protects the people around you."
Proper hand washing, naturally, is a habit that is strongly instilled in Milford Regional's medical staff. It has also reached out to its non-medical personnel and volunteers to encourage them to wash their hands while moving about the hospital and, recently, it installed hand sanitizing stations near patients' rooms to encourage visitors to keep their germs away from hospitalized loved ones.

UK: Challenge hospital staff about handwashing, advises trust boss
08.apr.08
Echo News
http://www.echo-news.co.uk/news/southendnews/display.var.2177574.0.challenge_hospital_staff_about_handwashing_advises_trust_boss.php
Barfblog Post
People concerned about hospital cleanliness are being urged to challenge health workers on whether they have washed their hands.
Andrew Pike, chief executive of South East Essex Primary Care Trust, was cited as saying huge efforts were being made to reduce the spread of the infections MRSA and C.Diff at Southend Hospital, adding, "The best way to reduce infections is strict adherence to good basic clinical practice, with hand washing being the most important. We would encourage people using health services to question any healthcare worker, whether in hospital or the community, if they have washed their hands. We also ask that visitors to the hospital wash their hands and do not attend the hospital if they are suffering from coughs, colds or other infections."