Information for Teachers
:: Letter to Educators
Dear Educators:
The Region of Peel is pleased to support the Teacher Resource Manual to promote Hand Hygiene as developed by the Ottawa Public Health Department. CD copies of the grade specific curricula, posters and fact sheets will be made available to your Board of Education for download as desired by educators. This is an excellent resource which has been adopted by a number of health departments across the province.
The Region of Peel would like to add the following statements to consider when using the Ottawa Teacher Resource Manual.
Hand hygiene is a term used to describe the cleaning of hands by washing hands at a sink with soap and water or by using alcohol based hand rub. It is important to wash your hands at a sink with soap and water whenever hands are visibly soiled (such as with dirt, paint, glue, etc.). Alcohol hand rubs are effective when hands are free of visible dirt.
Also, anyone handling or preparing food should wash their hands at a sink with running water and soap.
This manual addresses hand hygiene as it relates to respiratory infection. It does not specifically address hand hygiene as it relates to gastrointestinal infections or other types of communicable diseases. Educators are encouraged to tell their students about the importance of frequent and thorough hand hygiene as listed below.
Clean your hands before:
- touching your eyes, nose or mouth
- touching/preparing food or drinks
- eating or drinking
- caring for someone in your home who can easily get sick (baby, elderly or someone who has an unhealthy immune system)
- first aid
Clean your hands after:
- sneezing/coughing or using a tissue
- going to the washroom
- touching blood or body fluids
- touching pets or other animals
- touching raw meat, particularly chicken
- touching surfaces such as a railing or grocery cart
- touching money
- touching objects sick people have touched
- using sports equipment
- contact with those who has or may have an infection
- changing diapers
- wiping your own or a child’s nose
- removing gloves
- cleaning
- gardening
- whenever hands are dirty
We do hope you find this resource useful and welcome your comments and suggestions. The importance of frequent and through hand hygiene cannot be emphasized enough as critical to staying healthy through the school year and always.
Should you have questions or comments with regard to the use of this resource, please contact us at Peel Public Health.
