Hand hygiene
Hand hygiene is cleaning hands with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub to remove or kill microorganisms and reduce infection transmission.
Handwashing: Handwashing cleans hands with soap and running water, physically loosening and rinsing away dirt and microorganisms. Soap, friction, and rinsing make this the standard method when hands are visibly soiled.
World Health Organization Five Moments for Hand Hygiene: A clinical framework identifying five key moments for hand hygiene during patient care. It turns infection-control goals into specific hand-cleaning indications around patient contact.
Infection: The invasion and multiplication of microorganisms in a host, which may or may not cause disease. Hand hygiene aims to reduce opportunities for infectious agents to reach a susceptible host.
Surgical hand antisepsis: A preoperative procedure that reduces microorganisms on the hands and forearms of surgical personnel. It is a more stringent, procedure-specific form of hand hygiene than routine cleaning.
Alcohol-based hand rub: A liquid, gel, or foam containing alcohol that reduces many microorganisms on the hands without rinsing. It offers a rapid alternative when hands are not visibly dirty and a sink is unavailable.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention hand hygiene guidance: U.S. public-health recommendations for hand cleaning in health care and community settings. Its guidance specifies when soap and water or alcohol rub is preferred.
Pathogen: A biological agent capable of causing disease in a host. Hand cleaning targets pathogens among the microbes that hands can carry.
Antiseptic handwashing: Handwashing with an antimicrobial soap intended to remove soil and reduce microorganisms on the hands. It combines soap-and-water removal with an antimicrobial agent, unlike plain soap washing.
Surfactant: A substance that lowers surface tension and helps water disperse oils and suspend particles. Soap surfactants help lift oils and microbes so rinsing can carry them away.
Food safety: Practices that prevent foodborne illness by controlling contamination during food production, preparation, and storage. Clean hands limit transfer of pathogens between people, surfaces, and food.