The Global Handwashing Day is meant to promote the public awareness of the importance of washing hands with water and soap as a major shield against diseases, especially the communicable ones. Recent studies have indicated that about 1.7million under-five children die every year owing to diarrhea. Therefore, washing hands, on a regular basis, with water and soap can reduce the risk of diarrhea by up to 47%.
Washing hands with soap and water helps prevent infection against several diseases, including:
- Digestive system diseases, such as diarrhea.
- Respiratory diseases, such as pneumonia and influenza.
- Soil-borne diseases, which affect more than 1.5 billion people in the world.
- Outbreaks, such as MERS-CoV.
Official Date:
Globally: October 15th, 2015
Locally: Al-Muharram 2nd, 1437H
Logo of the Global Handwashing Day 2015:
Raise a Hand for Hygiene
Objectives of the Global Handwashing Day:
- Promoting the culture of hand washing with water and soap, both nationally and internationally.
- Highlighting that hands are the main factor for the transmission of microbes from one person to another, and hence infection.
- Underscoring the importance of educating the community members and increasing their awareness of the necessity of hand washing on a regular basis, thus preventing infection transmission.
- Placing greater emphasis on educating children on hand washing on a regular basis.
Targeted Groups:
- Health workers: physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and health educators.
- Education workers: teachers, social workers, etc.
- Health decision makers.
- Health associations and organizations.
- The general public.
- School students.
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