Handsfree Dispenser

        Children can be oblivious to clean hands or clean anything else for that matter. They have to be taught to wash their hands in the bathroom, before eating, after playing with pets. The list goes on but the most important time to wash hands is before eating.

Another thing to teach them is to sneeze or cough into the elbow so as not to spread cold and flu viruses. Parents and teachers can stress this with children. Day care centers and classrooms can be breeding places for children. Those in charge can use disinfectant wipes on toys, computers and other commonly used items especially during the cold and flu season.

We are not looking for overkill because research has shown that early exposure to harmless microbes can boost immunity to diseases and allergens. Good common sense instructions on personal hygiene and awareness of contamination are all that are neccessary to keep chilren from harmful germs

     We’ve all been told about potato salad in the summertime.  Don’t leave it unrefrigerated for long, and throw it out if it is not cold anymore.  Also responsible cooks and chefs will wash their hands before preparing food. What’s more when we order at a Subway, we can feel secure that the person making our sandwich has on vinyl gloves so therefore our food is not contaminated.

      Wrong. What we don’t know is how the different food items were prepared.  Did the food handler wash his or her hands before cutting up the vegetables and other items? Did he or she also handle other objects, thereby contaminating the food?   Even if a person wears gloves to handle food, if he or she touches other objects those gloves are contaminated  That also goes for cooking utensils while they are being used.

      After handwashing, the best way to dry hands is with a sanitary towel.  That means using a touchless towel dispenser. They can be wall-mounted  or countertop types.  Both are sensor-operated dispensers so that one gets a clean towel each time. This should be done before and after food handling.

      For foods other than meats and chicken a soap and water cleanup is sufficient, otherwise a disinfectant spray or wipe should be used on all surfaces touched by chicken and other meats to prevent the spread of Salmonella and e.coli.

     For those of us who work in an area that is shared by other workers, here is some advice on how to avoid germs that might cause illness. People who are sick should stay home, but sometimes they are just coming down with something and do not realize it. Even healthy people can contaminate a work area with their hands. A lot of cross-contamination happens when individuals pickup germs from objects and then touch other objects with unsanitary hands.

     Common places where germs thrive in the workplace are phones, elevator buttons, door knobs, restrooms, copy and fax machines, pens and pencils, and keyboards. Tests were conducted  to see how contaminated these different objects were.  By far, shared keyboards harbored more disease-causing germs than a toilet seat. Hard to believe, but true.  Different users add their own variety of microbes to the keys and usually the keyboards are not sanitized.

     Waterproof keyboards are available.  Some can even be put through a dishwasher cycle to clean (but not on the heat cycle).  Disinfectants can be used on them also, either disinfectant wipes or spray. A waterproof mouse that can be sanitized protects the user even further. Hospitals, schools, industrial offices, and other places could really prevent  some sick days by installing these keyboards.

     Life would be much easier and healthier if we could use sensor-operated dispensers to wash our hands, especially in public restrooms.  We are told by the CDC (Center for Disease Control) that simple, proper handwashing can avoid cross contamination of disease-causing viruses and other germs. This is very important for safe food handling.

     In my visits to public restrooms, seldom do I find that they are equipped with sensor-operated soap and towel dispensers,  flushers, water faucets, or door openers. Yet all of these devices are important when avoiding germs.  The last link in the picture is a sanitary door opener.  It can be as simple as a foot or arm operated add-on or an automated device.  I recommend that the visitor use a paper towel to open the door.  Toss it on the floor if there isn’t a waste can near the door.

      After ordering in a restaurant, sanitize your hands or wash them before eating. Remember that menu is handled by hundreds of customers and waiters and it is really contaminated.

      Flying or staying in motels present their own concerns. Keep that hand sanitizer available and pack your disinfectant wipes for the motel phone, doorknobs,  and TV remote.  An ultraviolight sanitizer would be great to put in your luggage too. Sick people ought to stay home but sometimes it is not possible. Try to avoid them if you can. To be considerate of others, sneeze or cough into an elbow. In the same vein, cancel your dental appointment if you are ill. Although the dental personnel wear germ barriers, the office magazines and doorknobs are not protected.

      The keyboard at work is very contaminated and should be disinfected with wipes or replaced with a washable one. Phones, doorknobs, elevator buttons could also use a sanitizing, especially during the flu season.

      This is just a highlight of the common ways to stay healthy . Enjoy all the best in the new year in good health.

     This is the season to be jolly.  A time for family gatherings.  Offices celebrate with parties.  People travel far and wide to be home for the holidays.  Shoppers  keep going, looking for that special gift.  Some areas of the country have a lovely carpet of snow.

     All of this sounds warm and fuzzy, festive and fun-loving.  The good news is that it usually is fun.  The bad news is that all this holiday activity exposes us to all kinds of viruses and germs.  The last thing you think of when hugging and kissing loved ones is the prospect of catching something. When shopping, it doesn’t occur to us that handling money, credit cards, and merchandise results in cross-contamination, especially during the busy season.  Commercial travel can do the same thing.  After all. airlines don’t disinfect planes after each flight. We are in restaurants  more often,  reading menus that everyone handles. We cannot avoid public restrooms either.

     So what can we do about all this?  It’s simple.  Stay aware of what you touch and when to wash or sanitize your hands, especially before eating or touching your mouth or nose.  If a restroom has devices such as handsfree towel dispensers and other touchless devices, then avoiding illness is easy. If not, just remember to keep your hands clean once they are washed. Enjoy your holiday socializing and stay healthy.

      There is an awareness these days about catching colds and flus, probably because of the H1N1 publicity.  People seem to be more careful about contaminating their hands .  They now sanitize or wash their hands before eating.  They even remind each other about these matters. Parents instruct their children, no matter what age, about handwashing and sneezing and couching into a tissue or elbow instead of their hands.

     A convenient way to teach younger children about avoiding germs and not sneezing or coughing them into the air is to use  Germy Wormy disposalable sleeve covers. The clever sleeves have a picture of Germy Wormy who eats the germs that are sneezed onto him. Childcare centers and parents get good results with them.

     One important message needs to be passed around.  When one leaves a public restroom, and the establishment has not installed a Sanitary Door Opener, use your paper towel to open the door.  After all, your washed hands should not be contaminated as you leave.

     You would not knowingly dip your hands into a bowl of germs.  Yuck!!  Well using a shared keyboard has almost the same effect, your fingers that touch the keyboard are contaminated.  Then whatever you touch with those unclean hands gets contaminated with microbes.

     That old saying “What you don’t see won’t hurt you”, does not apply here.  I read a study that found that there were more germs on a community keyboard than on a toilet seat. Egads!!  Don’t stop typing, there are remidies for the situation.

      First and foremost there are washable keyboards available.  They are immersable so that you can wash them completely. You don’t have to soap them up everyday.  In between washings you can clean the waterproof keyboard with a disinfectant wipe.  This doesn’t get in all those cracks like washing does but will reach the top surfaces.

     With the flu season upon us it pays to invest in a washable keyboard and cut down the sick days at work.

     Wherever you go you pick up germs on your hands everyday. Door knobs, money, mail, keyboards, shopping carts, people, animals, diapers, and the list goes on. When we touch our eyes, nose, or mouth, hopefully it will be with clean hands.  If not,  we can potentially get infected by these microbes.

      The big hype today is preventing getting a flu, especially the H1N1 Swine flu. Viruses that cause a flu can live on objects for awhile, enough time for you to pick them up on your hands. Here are a few important tips in preventing cross-contamination:

       Wash your hands before eating.  This is really important out in public. Restaurant menus are handled by hundreds of people, so wash your hands after handling a menu or use hand sanitizer. Clean your hands after touching objects such as previously mentioned to stay healthy. Sensor-operated, hands free soap and towels are the best dispensers. You can use countertop models in the home.

     How many times have we washed our hands in a public restroom only to find that we need to operate the towel dispenser with our now clean hands?  Didn’t we wash our hands so as not to pick up germs that were left behind by others?

     Today it happened to me again. After handwashing I had to try to get a paper towel out of the dispenser. After several attempts with my wrist, I finally got part of a towel.  Now the establishment had the common sense to put one of the towel dispensers near the exit door and also a trashcan., so one can use the towel to open the door (since they didn’t have a handsfree door opener).  It completely missed the boat when they installed those towel dispensers.

      All public restrooms should have touchfree towel dispensers to protect people from cross-contamination. During the flu and cold season we have to be extra careful since viruses can survive on objects and be transferred to others.

     I am often asked the question  ‘ Where Are The touchless soap dispensers”  And I am asked more frequently now that it is the flu season.  People seem to be more aware of germs today and so they wonder why don’t public restrooms have these dispensers.

     Parents are concerned about schoolchildren being exposed to cross-contamination in school restrooms. College dorms are reporting sick students.  Industries and businesses cannot afford to have workers stay home because they are ill.

     So what is the answer to keeping people well?  We are told by the CDC (Center for Disease Control) That proper handwashing is the best defense against spreading germs. There are several steps in avoiding touching things that are contaminated.  They are using automatic, sensor-operated devices when in public restrooms. It starts with the sensor-operated toilet flusher, the touchless soap dispenser, then the automatic faucet and towel dispenser, and finally the exit with a sanitary door opener.

        Besides the fashionable gloves worn for style, or those that keep the hands warm, gloves otherwise serve as a hygienic  barrier .  In the food industry,  food handlers will wear gloves as a barrier between the germs on their hands and the food. A good example that we see is a Subway sandwich preparer.   This measure makes us feel protected from cross-contamination.

         When we visit the dentist or dental hygienist,  procedures are conducted wearing exam gloves. OSHA rules demand that gloves be worn by dental personnel when working on a patient.   Masks are also barriers worn by them.

          Medical technicians who handle blood wear gloves.  Operating room doctors, obstetricians, and their nurses all wear gloves.  Hospitals and nursing facilities now provide exam gloves for patient caregivers.

          Even homicide detectives wear gloves so as not to contaminate evidence with their own fingerprints.  So as you can see, gloves are a neccesity for good hygiene.