Member Article

Nuffield Health help primary school pupils battle the bugs for International Infection Prevention Week

To mark International Infection Prevention Week 2018 (14-20 October), key stage one pupils at two South East Northumberland Primary Schools have been learning about the importance of washing your hands with help from Nuffield Health.

Led by Nuffield Health’s specialist infection prevention nurse, the children learned about the importance of thorough hand cleaning and hygiene as a way to prevent the spread of bacteria in both professional environments such as hospitals and schools, but also in the home.

After covering their hands in a special ‘GlitterBug’ disclosing gel, the children were shown how to wash their hands properly by Nuffield staff before using an ultraviolet light box to identify if they had ‘missed a spot’ while cleaning.

“Thorough hand cleaning is the single most effective way to prevent the spread of germs,” said Chris Finch, infection prevention nurse at Nuffield Health Newcastle Hospital.

“Teaching children the correct way to wash their hands and embedding the reasons why this is so important is something that they will remember forever, which will help them to establish good hygiene practices from an early age.

“With the winter season fast approaching, cold and flu viruses will soon start to become more prevalent again. When something as simple as washing your hands can help to minimise the spread of these potentially harmful bacteria, infection prevention should be a top priority for everyone.”

Andy Roberts, executive principal at the Ashington Learning Partnership Trust, said: “We were delighted to welcome the infection prevention team from Nuffield Health Newcastle to Ashington. We have always tried to instil the value of good hygiene in the children, using nursery-style rhymes to teach them about the importance of thorough handwashing, but this often drops off the radar as they move through the school.

“The visit from Nuffield Health will hopefully serve as a good reminder to the children and help us all to be more mindful about infection prevention, especially during the height of the cold and flu season.”

“We thoroughly enjoyed delivering the workshops to the children at Bothal and Central Primary Schools,” Chris added.

“The children were very enthusiastic and attentive and couldn’t wait to have a look at their hands under the UV light. We would like to extend our thanks to the staff and pupils for making us feel so welcome.”

Nuffield Health is a not-for-profit private healthcare organisation which operates 31 hospitals, and over 110 gyms and wellness clinics across the UK.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Amy Maughan, Contributor .