Although National Hand Hygiene Day has passed, continuing to implement hand hygiene practices in facilities to create a cleaner environment can help keep occupants healthy and safe. In recent years, the awareness of how easily germs and bacteria can transmit from person to person has become increasingly known. This makes it more important than ever to implement practices that encourage employees and guests of your facility to be mindful of how their hand hygiene affects those around them. These practices can also support your facility’s cleanliness goals, which reflects positively on your business.
How Hand Hygiene Supports Cleanliness Goals
Clean hands really can make a significant difference when it comes to business. Studies show that 95% of consumers want to see more cleaning practices in businesses regularly. When occupants feel that a facility is not meeting their cleanliness standards, this creates a negative connotation and reduces the chances that they will return or recommend your facility to other people. Hand hygiene may seem like a simple task, but research has found otherwise. In 2020, 2.3 billion people lacked basic hand hygiene while out in public facilities, making it extremely easy for the transmission of germs and bacteria and increasing people’s risk of illnesses. Help support your facility’s cleanliness goals by encouraging hand hygiene among employees and guests. Doing so shows occupants that their health and safety are a top priority while reducing the spread of germs in your facility.
Hand Hygiene Practices to Implement
Increasing hand hygiene practices in your facility means implementing the right tools. For employees, make sure they understand it is a requirement to wash their hands after situations such as using the restroom, handling and preparing food, as well as coughing and sneezing. You can also encourage employees to sanitize their hands after touching high-touch surfaces such as stair railings, elevator buttons and door handles. These surfaces often carry a larger number of germs that can easily be transmitted from person to person. Setting hygiene expectations for your employees to follow helps keep them safe and shows guests that health and safety are taken seriously within your facility. As for guests, have hand hygiene appliances accessible to them throughout the building. This includes hand sanitizer stations as well as routinely stocked soap products in public restrooms. Hand hygiene is only effective when done correctly. Implementing signs in public restrooms that display how to wash your hands properly can help remind employees and guests to be mindful of doing a thorough job to help eliminate germs.
Celebrate Hand Hygiene Year Round
National Hand Hygiene Day can go beyond just 24 hours. Spreading the importance of practicing hand hygiene year-round helps show consideration for everyone’s health and safety! Take the celebration to a whole new level by putting together hand hygiene goody bags. This can include small items such as hand sanitization bottles, infographic cards on the importance of hand hygiene and other on-the-go hygiene items such as travel tissues or hand-hygiene wipes. This is a fun and resourceful way to support your facility’s cleanliness goals by providing employees with hand-hygiene products they can use while on the job.
Conclusion
Reduce the spread of germs by spreading awareness of hand hygiene practices in your facility. At GSF USA, we continue to make efforts toward providing a sustainable, clean and safe environment for guests, with employees that are empowered by our leadership. Clean hands can help support your facility’s cleanliness goals and keep your occupants healthy and happy.