Hand Hygiene: The Questions People Actually Ask
Hand Hygiene: straight answers to the questions people actually ask, with the figures behind them.
Removing pathogens from hands mechanically with soap and water, or chemically with alcohol rub.
Key takeaways
- Handwashing duration: 20 seconds with soap and running water
- Gel against norovirus: poorly effective; use soap and water
- Most useful single change: Use soap and water after any vomiting or diarrhoea.
- Commonest mistake: Relying on alcohol gel during a norovirus outbreak.
- See a doctor if any of the signs under "When to speak to a doctor" below apply to you.
What is Hand Hygiene?
Removing pathogens from hands mechanically with soap and water, or chemically with alcohol rub.
Why does it matter?
It is the cheapest infection control measure there is, and the choice between soap and gel matters more than people realise.
Handwashing duration for Hand Hygiene?
20 seconds with soap and running water.
Gel against norovirus for Hand Hygiene?
Poorly effective; use soap and water.
Key moments for Hand Hygiene?
Before food, after the toilet, after caring for someone ill.
Norovirus exclusion advice for Hand Hygiene?
Stay off work or school for 48 hours after symptoms stop.
What is the single most useful thing to do?
Use soap and water after any vomiting or diarrhoea.
What is the most common mistake?
Relying on alcohol gel during a norovirus outbreak.
When should I see a doctor?
Contact NHS 111 or a GP for diarrhoea lasting more than seven days, vomiting that prevents you keeping fluids down for more than a day, blood in your stool, or signs of dehydration. Seek urgent advice for babies, older adults and immunosuppressed people, who dehydrate faster.
Where to go next
- Hand Hygiene: What to Do, in Order
- Hand Hygiene: Separating Myth From Guidance
- Hand Hygiene — the reference entry
- The Evidence on Fever, Without the Hype
- Vitamin C: What the Evidence Actually Says
When to speak to a doctor
Contact NHS 111 or a GP for diarrhoea lasting more than seven days, vomiting that prevents you keeping fluids down for more than a day, blood in your stool, or signs of dehydration. Seek urgent advice for babies, older adults and immunosuppressed people, who dehydrate faster.
Where this comes from
- NHS — How to wash your hands
- UK Health Security Agency — norovirus guidance
How this page was put together
Every figure, recommendation and warning above is taken from the guidance named in Where this comes from. Nothing on this page is inferred, summarised or generalised beyond what those bodies publish: where they give a number, it is their number, and where they are silent, so are we. Pages are rebuilt whenever the underlying record changes. Sign-off by a named clinician, where it has happened, is shown at the top of the page along with the date.
Medical disclaimer
This article is general information, not medical advice. It cannot account for your own history, medication or circumstances. Always speak to a GP, pharmacist or another qualified health professional before making changes that affect your treatment, and never delay seeking medical advice because of something you have read here. In an emergency, call 999.
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