Hand Washing
As with everything else in dialysis, you will be trained on how to wash your hands. I thought it would be useful to show you how I wash my hands and then give a few tips & info at the end.
- Step 1 - Make sure your hands and wrists are wet and put a 50p size amount of the scrub into one hand.
- Step 2 - Run the scrub all over your hands and wrists getting a good laver going.
- Step 3 - With the palm of your hand flat, run your fingers from your other hand in a circular motion over the palm & count to 10 – repeat with the opposite hand
- Step 4 - Turn you hand over and place your palm on top of the back of your hand and rub up and down, making sure you go through the fingers & count to 10 – repeat with the opposite hand.
- Step 5 - Rub each finger individually making sure that you rub from the bottom of the finger towards the tip.
- Step 6 - Place your nails on your palms and drag them in towards your hands (like making a fist) so they collect some of the dirt and you are almost shaking hands with yourself. Squeeze both hands 10 times.
- Step 7 - Rub your nails and cuticles on each finger.
- Step 8 - Clasp around your wrist and rotate your hand back and forth – like you are getting yourself a Chinese burn, while counting to 10. Repeat on the opposite wrist.
- Step 9 - Making sure not to touch the tap, any part of the bowl or anything else, throughly raise your hands making sure all the soap is off.
- Step 10 - Use the paper towels provided or kitchen roll to dry your hands – again throughly. They must be dry to the touch.
- Step 11 - Using the paper towel you used to dry your hands, turn the tap off.
Your hands are now "dialysis clean". However there a few tips and things to remember;
- Take off watches, bracelets or anything around your wrists.
- Rings on the fingers can stay in just make sure you move them around when your washing your hands.
- It is not the soap or water that is cleaning your hands. It is the rubbing actions.
- There is no such thing as sterile hands, so even after you have cleaned them, only touch what is absolutely necessary.
- After cleaning your hands, use the alcohol rub provided and you need to take a squirt, rub it over your hands and then let it dry – do not continue to rub until it drys.
- The drying of the alcohol rub is what kills the bacteria on your hands.
- Buy a very good hand clean – use this after you no longer need clean hands. It will return the moisture lost and stop you getting sores.
- If you do touch any surface etc; then start from the beginning. Do not cut corners on hand hygiene.
- Inflection of the exit site or peritoneum is 99% of the time down to not having clean hands.
- Do not use hand towels to dry your hands as they are not hygienic.