Statistically, people don’t practice proper hand hygiene on a consistent basis. This leaves high-touched surfaces riddled with germs and the potential for cross-contamination high. In fact, the germ counts on certain surfaces might surprise even the most educated custodial professional.

Kimberly-Clark Professional recently found:
• The average desk has more than 20,000 germs per square inch — nearly 400 times as many germs as a toilet seat
• Surfaces that teachers touch have 10 times more bacteria per square inch than those touched by other professionals
• Seventy percent of gas pump handles are highly contaminated
• Forth percent of escalator rails are highly contaminated
• Fifty percent of home TV remotes tested positive for cold viruses

Experts recommend that facility executives be proactive in the prevention of cold and flu viruses. Strong hand hygiene is proven to reduce the risk of infection. The study reported that 80 percent of the risk of obtaining the cold and flu virus is preventable through simple hand washing.

Proper hand hygiene results in healthier workplaces and workforces.

To learn more about reducing the risks of infection control, click here for a free tutorial from Dr. Charles Gerba, Ph.D. (Dr. Germ), microbiologist and professor at the University of Arizona.