Nurse

Keeping Hands Clean

Hand washing is one of the best ways to protect yourself and your family from getting sick. Learn when and how you should wash your hands to stay healthy.

How Germs Spread

Washing hands can keep you healthy and prevent the spread of respiratory and diarrheal infections from one person to the next. Germs can spread from other people or surfaces when you:

• Touch your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands
• Prepare or eat food and drinks with unwashed hands
• Touch a contaminated surface or objects
• Blow your nose, cough, or sneeze into hands and then touch other people’s hands or common objects

Key Times to Wash Hands

You can help yourself and your loved ones stay healthy by washing your hands often, especially during these key times when you are likely to get and spread germs:

• Before, during, and after preparing food
• Before eating food
• Before and afte rcaring for someone at home who is sick with vomiting or diarrhea
• Before and after treating a cut or wound
• After using the toilet
• After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing
• After touching an animal, animal feed, or animal waste
• After handling pet food or pet treats
• After touching garbage

During the COVID-19 pandemic, you should also clean hands:

• After you have been in a public place and touched an item or surface that may be frequently touched by other people, such as door handles, tables, gas pumps, shopping carts, or electronic cashier registers/screens, etc.
• Before touching your eyes, nose, or mouth because that’s how germs enter our bodies.

Follow Five Steps to Wash Your Hands the Right Way

Washing your hands is easy, and it’s one of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of germs. Clean hands can stop germs from spreading from one person to another and throughout an entire community—from your home and workplace to childcare facilities and hospitals.

Follow these five steps every time.

1. Wet your hands with clean, running water (warm or cold), turn off the tap, and apply soap.
2. Lather your hands by rubbing them together with the soap. Lather the backs of your hands, between your fingers, and under your nails.
3. Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds. Need a timer? Hum the “Happy Birthday” song from beginning to end twice.
4. Rinse your hands well under clean, running water.
5. Dry your hands using a clean towel or air dry them.

Use Hand Sanitizer When You Can’t Use Soap and Water

You can use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available.

Washing hands with soap and water is the best way to get rid of germs in most situations.  If soap and water are not readily available, you can use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. You can tell if the sanitizer contains at least 60% alcohol by looking at the product label.

Sanitizers can quickly reduce the number of germs on hands in many situations. However,

• Sanitizers do not get rid of all types of germs.
• Hand sanitizers may not be as effective when hands are visibly dirty or greasy.
• Hand sanitizers might not remove harmful chemicals from hands like pesticides and heavy metals.

Caution!  Swallowing alcohol-based hand sanitizers can cause alcohol poisoning if more than a couple of mouthfuls are swallowed. Keep it out of reach of young children and supervise their use .

How to use hand sanitizer

• Apply the gel product to the palm of one hand (read the label to learn the correct amount).
• Rub your hands together.
• Rub the gel over all the surfaces of your hands and fingers until your hands are dry. This should take around 20 seconds.

If Your Student is Ill....

If your child becomes ill and doesn’t feel well enough to take part in school, as parents or guardians, you should keep your child home until the symptoms improve. This also can help to prevent the spread of the illness to others at school. These are some of the examples of when your child should be kept home:

• Active vomiting

• Active diarrhea – three or more times in six hours

• The beginning of an airway infection (cold/cough/runny nose) [This is especially important for those who are unable to manage their own body fluids]

• Extreme tiredness and/or lack of appetite

• Fever with headache, body aches, earache, sore throat

• Undiagnosed or unknown rash (a rash that has not been seen or treated by a health care provider)

• Any of the above symptoms with fever or chills

• Untreated skin conditions

• If antibiotic treatment is needed, your child should remain home for the first full 24 hours of medication (e.g., if your child has three doses per day ordered, then three doses must be given before the child returns to school)

If any symptoms change, worsen or don’t get better please call your health care provider.

Your child can return to school when he or she is well enough to take part in school and has had no fever for 24 hours without medication (acetaminophen, Tylenol®, etc.).

Immunizations:

Immunization records are reviewed each year. Children will not be enrolled unless they have up to date immunizations.  The New Mexico State Law requires immunizations for school attendance, or a waiver to be completed by the Department of Health. Please see this website for immunization schedules, requirements and waiver forms. If your student is out of compliance with these laws, they may be dis-enrolled form school. We want to support you and your student with any health-related concerns, so please know you are welcome to come by and talk with us. Thank you for participating in your student's education, health and wellness!