A Disinfection and Hand Hygiene Program for Schools
An Evidence-Based Practice
This practice has been Archived and is no longer maintained.
Description
This disinfection and hand hygiene program aimed to reduce gastrointestinal and respiratory illness-related absenteeism in elementary schools by using disinfectant surface wipes and hand sanitizer in conjunction with standard hand-hygiene protocol. Teachers disinfected classrooms with disinfecting wipes and encouraged the use of hand sanitizer after lunch, restroom visits, and contact with potentially infectious secretions on surfaces.
Goal / Mission
To reduce gastrointestinal and respiratory illness-related absenteeism in elementary school students by using surface disinfectants.
Results / Accomplishments
The effectiveness of this disinfection and hand hygiene program was evaluated by an eight-week randomized controlled trial. After adjusting for race, health status, family size, and hand-sanitizer use at home, absenteeism rate due to gastrointestinal illnesses in the intervention group was significantly lower than that of the control group (p-value < 0.05). There was also a significant reduction in the presence of
norovirus, a virus which causes diarrhea, on classroom surfaces in the intervention group compared to control group (9% vs. 29% surface sample tested positive, respectively; p-value < 0.01). However, the adjusted absenteeism rate due to respiratory illnesses was statistically insignificant between the two groups (p-value > 0.05), and no significant decrease in surface bacterial count on intervention classrooms was found (p-value > 0.05).
norovirus, a virus which causes diarrhea, on classroom surfaces in the intervention group compared to control group (9% vs. 29% surface sample tested positive, respectively; p-value < 0.01). However, the adjusted absenteeism rate due to respiratory illnesses was statistically insignificant between the two groups (p-value > 0.05), and no significant decrease in surface bacterial count on intervention classrooms was found (p-value > 0.05).
About this Promising Practice
Organization(s)
Children’s Hospital Boston
Primary Contact
Thomas J. Sandora
Children’s Hospital Boston
300 Longwood Ave.
Boston, Massachusetts, 02115
Thomas.sandora@childrens.harvard.edu
Children’s Hospital Boston
300 Longwood Ave.
Boston, Massachusetts, 02115
Thomas.sandora@childrens.harvard.edu
Topics
Health / Children's Health
Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases
Health / Immunizations & Infectious Diseases
Organization(s)
Children’s Hospital Boston
Source
The Clorox Company
Date of publication
2008
Date of implementation
2006
Location
USA
For more details
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=18519460
http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00514670...
http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00514670...
Target Audience
Children, Adults, Families
Submitted By
Chia Shuo Chang, Eric Donn, Sharon Louie - UC Berkeley School of Public Health