The Dark Side of Hand Hygiene
- #Hand Hygiene
The World Health Organisation reaffirms the importance of hand hygiene with their yearly SAVE LIVES – Clean Your Hands global campaign. The campaign has been running since 2009, long before the storm of COVID. This message of hand hygiene and saving lives has never been more profound than in the last 12 months.
Going back to March 2020 and the critical role of hand hygiene was relatively new to many outside health or hospitality.
That changed overnight.
Everyone, the world over, suddenly needed hand hygiene systems to join arms in the battle against COVID.
Demand outstripped supply. Prices rocketed. Sustainability went to the wind....
Many businesses bought bulk fill systems; dispensers and pump bottles that are refilled from 5 ltr plastic containers. Many are still being used.
At face value these systems are economical, but in reality the unmeasured dosage makes them wasteful in terms of cost, product and plastic.
Of greater concern however…
Global experts in health and disease control have raised some very worrying safety issues around these common refilling practises.
These include lowered efficacy (ability to kill germs) from expired, contaminated or diluted product and not meeting FDA (US Food and Drug Administration) regulations.
This isn’t new ‘News’ though.
Studies going back 10 years plus have shown that bulk refill dispensers are prone to bacterial contamination. You only have to ask Google the question to get a myriad of answers from academia through to suppliers looking for commercial gain.
What exactly is the problem with bulk refilling?
A multitude of reasons makes them a considerable health risk; one that can’t really stand up to a global pandemic.
- Reduced efficacy - adding to and refilling dispensers can cause alcohol evaporation, reducing effectiveness.
- Cross contamination - old or expired hand sanitiser can remain in the dispenser or bottle indefinitely, causing further cross contamination with every refill.
- Mixing hazards - contamination and loss of efficacy will occur if new products are mixed with old and ingredients are combined in unknown measures.
If this all sounds a bit serious, that’s because quite honestly, it is.
The good news is it’s easy to fix; in a safe, sustainable way that also reduces cost and single use plastic.
How?
Simple - replace bulk refill dispenser systems with a cartridge refill hand hygiene system.
Why is this better?
- A new sterile pump is fitted with each new cartridge, ensuring no product is left inside the dispenser and no risk of cross contamination.
- A cartridge can give up to 2,500 sterile measured doses as opposed to 800 contaminated doses from a bulk refill dispenser – for the same cost.
- Plastic waste is cut with one cartridge lasting as long as 5 x 5 ltr plastic disposable refill containers.
- Maintenance time is cut – 20 seconds to refill with no mess or spillages.
In summary, a cartridge refill hand hygiene system should ensure:
- No dilution.
- No contamination.
- No expired product.
- No Health Risk