Integrated Maternal and Newborn Care Basic Skills Course ...

Reference Manual
Materials required for hand washing include:
• clean running water
• liquid soap (preferably in a receptacle fixed to the wall) or small pieces of soap, ideally
used only once. Where feasible, liquid antiseptic soap would be better for places such as
the delivery room and operation theater.
• sink or bowls
• veronica bucket (bucket with a tap)
• individual towels
The steps in hand washing are:
1. Remove watches, bracelets, and rings.
2. Nails should be short and without nail polish; artificial nails should not be worn.
3. Wet hands with running water.
4. Rub hands together with soap and lather well up to the elbows, covering all surfaces for
15-30 seconds. When attending deliveries, carrying out procedures, and where the
hands are visibly soiled, wash longer, for about two minutes.
5. Weave fingers and thumbs together and slide them back and forth, taking care to rub
well between the fingers and the back of the hand.
6. Rinse hands under a stream of clean, running water until all soap is gone.
7. If there is no running water, hands should not be dipped inside the bowl of water;
instead, the water should be poured over the hands from another container.
8. Blot hands dry with a clean, dry towel or air-dry them; air-drying is the best, especially
when sterile gloves have to be worn.
These steps are illustrated in Figure 1.1.
Integrated maternal and newborn care
Basic skills course
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