National Handwashing Awareness Week (December 4 – 6, 2016) is dedicated to helping people remain healthy one handwash at a time. Given the prevalence of preventable Hospital-Acquired Infections (HAIs) among individuals and their family members, this observance aims to promote “Hand Awareness.”
Follow the four principles of Hand Awareness, which have been endorsed by the American Medical Association (AMA) and the American Academy of Family Practitioners (AAFP), to minimize infectious diseases.
1. Wash your hands when they are dirty and BEFORE eating
2. DO NOT cough into your hands
3. DO NOT sneeze into your hands
4. Above all, DO NOT put your fingers into your eyes, nose or mouth
In honor of Handwashing Awareness Week, host a hand hygiene training for staff using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s training presentation.
You can print and hang the posters near handwashing areas to remind staff of the importance of hand hygiene in December and year round.
- Sanitize Twice
- Don’t Give Bacteria a Free Ride
- How Temperatures Affect Germs
- Infection Prevention and You at the Hospital Poster
Utilize these printable educational materials to promote hand washing throughout your facility with staff, patients and visitors.
- 2016 National Handwashing Awareness Week
- Handwashing: A Family Activity
- Handwashing: A Corporate Activity
- Stop Germs! Stay Healthy! Wash Your Hands Fact Sheet
Additional Resources
Engaging Patients & Families in Hand Hygiene
The Hand Hygiene Huddle Video
Roadmap to Engaging Patients & Families in Hand Hygiene
Henry the Hand
CDC Hand Hygiene Resource Center
The Maryland Hospital Hand Hygiene Collaborative
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) information about handwashing