Handwashing
December 2005

School-wide handwashing campaigns cut germs, absenteeism
05.dec.05
Eductation World
Gary Hopkins
http://www.education-world.com/a_admin/admin/admin431.shtml
School-wide handwashing campaigns cut germs, absenteeism
Studies reveal that school-wide handwashing programs can make a difference in the health of students and staff and, as a result, improve school attendance.
If your school does not have a program in place, are you aware of how many resources -- including many free ones -- are available to help get you started?
 Did you know...
* Nearly 22 million school days are lost each year due to the common cold?
* 52.2 million cases of the common cold affect children under 17 years of age each year?
* Children have about 6-10 colds a year?
* Adults average 2-4 colds a year?
* Some viruses and bacteria can live from 20 minutes up to 2 hours or more on surfaces like cafeteria tables, doorknobs, and desks?
The CDC reports that addressing the spread of germs in schools is essential to the health of our youth and our schools. "The most  
important thing that you can do to keep from getting sick is to wash your hands," acccording to the CDC's official statement on handwashing.
And many studies document handwashing's impact on student and staff attendance: school-wide handwashing programs reduce absenteeism.
* A study of 305 Detroit children found that youngsters who washed their hands four times a day had 24 percent fewer sick days due to  respiratory illness and 51 percent fewer days lost because of stomach upset. (Source)
* A study of 290 students in 5 schools (two in Ohio and one each in Delaware, Tennessee, and California) revealed that handwashing  
education and the use of hand sanitizer resulted in 51 percent less absenteeism. (Source)
When Should You Wash Your Hands?
You should wash your hands often. Probably more often than you do now, according to the CDC. It is especially important to wash hands
* before and after handling food,
* after using the bathroom,
* after touching animals,
* when your hands are dirty, and
* more frequently when someone in your home is sick.
Source: CDC
Those statistics about student absenteeism are a strong argument for introducing handwashing into the school curriculum. Inspite of thatdata, "we have had experience with several principals who have given our handwashing curriculum a lukewarm reception," says Carol  
Schreiber, a consultant with the Minnesota Department of Health and the lead author of its Handwashing Tool Kit On average, teachers are absent from school more days than students are, says Schreiber. Multiply the number of teacher sick days per year times the daily fee for a substitute, and then you're talking money. "That's why we decided to put our handwashing curriculum into the context of the cost of absenteeism to schools," added Schreiber. "Making that connection to the costs to the school district gets their attention!"
Principals advocate handwashing
The availability of hand sanitizer has cut down on the spread of colds at Transfiguration School in West Hazleton, Pennsylvania,  
according to principal Sherry Ambrose. Each year, Ambrose and the school's teachers send home a list of items that are frequently used but not always in supply, and willing parents respond to those requests"A few years ago we began requesting bottles of hand sanitizer along with our request for tissues and other items," Ambrose told Education World. "Now every classroom has a large bottle with a hand pump right inside the classroom door. "Students never miss the chance to use the hand sanitizer -- they love it! And all our teachers and I keep a bottle handy on our desks."
In Arlington, Virginia, schools used to rely on parents to supply sanitizer gel, but now the district has installed hand-sanitizer  
dispensers in all classrooms and made large supplies of the gel available. "Now when children are coming in from recess or going to lunch without time for a restroom break, they get a squirt of the gel," said Lolli Haws, principal at Arlington's Oakridge Elementary School.
Haws also shared that her school is home to an in-house TV studio, and students have produced and directed tv segments on handwashing for their peers. "When a number of children in a classroom are absent, teachers often  
stop and have everyone pitch in to wash down desks and other things with antibacterial detergent," added Haws.
Join the Conversation
Have you created or used a program in your school to educate students about the importance of handwashing? What steps did you take to educate students? What impacts did you witness as a result? Share news of your school's handwashing efforts so that others might benefit from your experience. At the start of cold and flu season, principal Karen Hodges asks her school nurse to visit each classroom to teach a lesson on the importance of handwashing. "Even though many of us have the anti-bacterial solution in our rooms, the best antidote for germs is wash, wash, wash with soap and water," explained Hodges, principal at Brockton (Massachusetts) Christian School. "We teach our students to sing the ABC song while they're washing their hands," added Hodges, noting that washing for the length of the song will be long enough to kill most germs. Another principal suggests having students sing "Happy Birthday." Each song means students wash their hands for 15 to 20 seconds. At Edenrose (Ontario, Canada) Public School, principal Deepi Kang-Weisz says the regional health department provides a curriculum that reviews handwashing techniques with students. "We also hang handwashing posters in all student and staff washrooms," she added.