Comparison of different hand washing techniques to control transmission of microorgenisms

Aim: to determine the frequency of microbial flora on the hands during patient care activities and to compare the efficacy of different hand washing agents in a tertiary care paediatric hospital. place and duration of study: the study was conducted in the department of microbiology,the children's hospital lahore,from july 2013 to december 2013. methodology: a total of 240 samples from hands of health care workers (hcws) were collected and processed for microbiological analysis using various microbiological techniques. results: there were 40 health care workers involved in different patient care activities were chosen and analyzed for bacterial contamination on hands. the random samples were collected from them before and after hand washing with water,soap and alcoholic hand rub. frequency of reduction in bacterial growth was 8% with water,52.5% with soap and 95% with alcoholic hand rub. conclusion: identification of microbial contamination is an important factor in controlling the nosocomial infections transmitted by health care workers. hand washing with alcoholic hand rub is more effective in removal of microbial flora.