Global Handwashing Day 2022

15 October

Global Handwashing Day (GHD) is observed every year on October 15. The Global Handwashing Partnership, an international coalition of organizations working to promote handwashing with soap, has created the day.

It is an annual global advocacy day dedicated to raising awareness about the benefits of handwashing with soap as an easy, effective, and affordable way to prevent diseases, promote health and save lives.

Handwashing with soap is easy: Though the act is simple, it requires few resources only-soap and small quantity of water but protects us all from various diseases.

Handwashing with soap is effective: Regularly washing hands with soap at key times such as after using the toilet or before handling food, can drastically reduce the risk of diarrhea, pneumonia, influenza and other infections.

Handwashing with soap is affordable: Investments in handwashing are affordable and cost effective.

The theme for Global Handwashing Day 2022 is “Unite for Universal Hand Hygiene.” This year’s theme calls all of us to work together to promote universal access and practice of hand hygiene.

Unite for Universal Hand Hygiene:

to support affordable, accessible, and desirable hand hygiene solutions for everyone, everywhere.
to prioritize hand hygiene in institutional and public settings, including schools, healthcare facilities, workplaces.
to advocate for hand hygiene as an essential element of health and development.

Benefits of hand hygiene

Hand hygiene reduces diarrheal diseases by 30%.
It can reduce acute respiratory infections by up to 20%.
It reduces the transmission of outbreak-related pathogens such as cholera, Ebola, SARS, hepatitis E, and COVID-19.
It can reduce healthcare-associated infections and prevent the spread of antimicrobial resistance.

We must take collective action to accelerate progress for hand hygiene to achieve universal hand hygiene by 2030. Global efforts towards universal hygiene must increase by at least 4x, as with the current rate of progress only 78% of people will have access to a hand hygiene facility by 2030.

#GlobalHandwashingDay

#UniteforUniversalHandHygiene

Know more about:

About Handwashing

Frequently Asked Questions

For more information on Hand Washing, visit the link https://www.nhp.gov.in/hand-washing_pg

Previous Days

Global Handwashing Day 2020

Global Handwashing Day 2019

Global Handwashing Day 2018

References-

https://globalhandwashing.org/global-handwashing-day/about-ghd/