Hand hygiene and stopping the spread of COVID-19

Abstract

Health professionals' lack of compliance with hand hygiene is a problem in both hospitals and emergency medical services. The 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19), caused by SARS-CoV-2, is spreading around the world and practitioners must play their part to contain the outbreak. Hand hygiene is one of the most important measures to prevent the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and stop the spread of COVID-19. A range of products (including alcohol-based handrub and personal and respiratory protective equipment), procedures and strategies can improve compliance with hand hygiene in emergency medical services. Incorporating hand-hygiene strategies into policy can help providers to improve compliance. Effectiveness of infection prevention and control measures should be assessed by audit. All health professionals should contribute to improving infection prevention and control, including in the prehospital environment and during transfer between settings.