Hand Washing

Wash your hands between each and every patient! Many of our patients have additional diseases (Upper Respiratory Infections, Mange, or Distemper). Keeping hands clean is one of the best ways to prevent the spread of infectious agents. Hands must be thoroughly cleaned between patients before touching other supplies in the hospital (medication viles, water bowls, etc), as indirect transfer of disease is also possible. Especially when leaving the ICU (scrubbing out), please follow the Center for Disease Control (CDC)-approved method for washing your hands in a medical setting to prevent spread of hospital diseases. 

Medical Hand Washing Procedure

1. Wet your hands, wrists and forearms with clean, running water (warm whenever possible).

2. Apply antibacterial soap.

3. Rub your hands together to make a lather and scrub them well; be sure to scrub the backs of your hands, between your fingers, under your nails, up your wrists and on your forearms.

4. Continue rubbing your hands for at least 20 seconds. Need a timer? Hum the "Happy Birthday" song from beginning to end twice.

5. Rinse your hands well under running water (warm whenever possible).

6. Turn off the tap using a clean towel.

7. Dry your hands using a clean towel or air dry.

Additional Disease Prevention Procedures

Additional Procedures must be followed for dogs who have symptoms of other spreadable diseases (Distemper, Upper Respiratory Infections and/or Mange).

1. A gown/smock must be worn anytime you hold a puppy or they come in contact with your scrubs.

2. Wear gloves when you are handling the puppy. Take the gloves off if you are handling shared supplies, including food cans, medication containers etc if you keep your gloves on, your are spreading deadly diseases to other patients.

3. Spray your scrubs down with parvocidal disinfectant.

4. In most cases, you should treat the puppies with additional diseases last. However, if a puppy is very critical, triage as normal.