Hand hygiene saves millions of lives every year when performed at the right moments and with the right technique. World Hand Hygiene Day is marked every year on May 5th, to raise awareness on the importance of handwashing to prevent the spread of infections.
The First-year students (2022 Cohort) from the College of Nursing, GMU celebrated ‘World Hand Hygiene Day’ with the theme ‘Accelerate action together: Save Lives-Clean your hands’ on 5th May 2023.
The event was held at the GMU E-learning center with an aim of raising awareness about the importance of hand hygiene among all the health professions students of the university including Faculty and Staff. The event was inaugurated by Prof. Manda Venkatramana, Vice-Chancellor, Gulf Medical University and Prof. Selva Titus Chacko, Dean of the College of Nursing along with the faculty and students. The inauguration was marked by a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a speech by the Vice-Chancellor, who highlighted the importance of hand hygiene in preventing the spread of infectious diseases.
The program included various interactive stations and activities that engaged the participants. These stations included Poster presentation, Models of common Germs, Games like Hand puzzle & Spot the difference, Glitter germ activity, Pledge Tree and Hand Hygiene Song and Dance.
The Hand puzzle and spot the difference games were designed to challenge participants to spot the differences between clean and dirty hands, while during the Glitter germ activity the participants were made to wear gloves and given glittered paints. They were then asked to demonstrate how they routinely sanitized their hands. They were made to realize that all the areas where the paint did not spread are the hidden areas which remain un-sanitized even after routine hand hygiene. They were then guided to the Hand hygiene demonstration station to learn the correct technique of sanitizing their hands completely.
The Hand hygiene song was a catchy yet effective song to memorize the correct sequence of performing the 6 steps of hand hygiene. The Hand Hygiene song and dance was a fun-filled activity that helped reinforce the importance of hand hygiene in a creative and engaging way.
The final station was the ‘Pledge Tree’ where participants could take a pledge to maintain good hand hygiene practices in their daily lives.
Overall, the event was a great success in raising awareness about the importance of hand hygiene. Around 53 participants attended the event and gave positive and motivating feedback to the students. The participants enjoyed the interactive stations and learned valuable lessons about maintaining proper hand hygiene practices. The event was a great initiative taken by the First-year BSN nursing students and is expected to have a significant impact on the wider community in promoting good hand hygiene practices.
