Nursery Management: Hygiene - Squeaky clean

Good hygiene practice relies on good facilities - especially in washroomareas - for both staff and children. It is important that everyone whoenters the nursery understands their responsibilities, and that startswith correct handwashing, as infection through contact is one of thebiggest risks.

There are four simple rules for effective handwashing:

1. Educate the children

Regularly raise the topic of hygiene awareness by discussing germs andhow they spread. You could even ask children to draw what they thinkgerms look like under a microscope. Or, for the more adventurous orscience-minded, grow a colony in a petri dish from a swab of a child'shand. You can also download bathroom hygiene and handwashing charts tocolour in and display in the washroom areas (laminated if possible).

2. Educate staff

All staff who have completed food safety level 1 will have touched onhand and personal hygiene. Reinforce personal hygiene training withrefresher sessions that can be tied in with other training, such asinfection control.

3. Get back to basics - use soap and warm water

Remove all antibacterial soap (see box) within the nursery environment.If you have your soap supplied by a local, reputable washroom servicescompany, ask for a foaming or spray soap dispenser. Children love foamand it uses ten to 20 times less soap per dose than liquid soap, it iseasier to see and spread over the hands, and it is much cheaper perdose.

4. Use paper towels

The physical action of rubbing hands with paper is a key factor inremoving the food source for germs. By installing a continuous feedcabinet, children can only use one 'portion' at a time and will not pullout three, four or even ten 'C' fold paper towels at a time. It alsoremoves the need for a waste bin in the washroom area. Hand-driers arenoisy and ineffective (unless super-powered), and recent studies showthat using paper towels decreases bacteria by 58 per cent, compared withan increase in the number of bacteria when using hand-driers by 255 percent.

While handwashing is an integral part of good hygiene, other areasshould not be overlooked. Here are some easy steps to minimise risk:

Kitchen and food areas

Ultimately, it is the nursery manager who must ensure that proceduresand records are in order, although on a day-to-day basis, it isimportant that kitchen managers take responsibility. The Food StandardsAgency's information sheet, 'safer food better business', is availableto download fromhttp://www.food.gov.uk/multimedia/pdfs/sfbbfullpack.pdf.

This covers all aspects of hygiene in the kitchen and is the abridgedguide that the local Executive Health Officer will use to grade thekitchen in the new 'scores on the doors' rating that is currently beingrolled out across the UK.

Play tables which double up as dining tables should always be cleanedand sanitised (ensure that the product has an EN1276 accreditation) inline with the product guidelines before and after eating, andperiodically checked for food debris stuck under the table - it has beenknown for children who do not like a particular food to stick it underthe table!

Crockery and cutlery should always be washed in a dishwasher as thetemperature ensures that they are sanitised properly and mechanicalwashing is much more effective than manual washing.

It is good practice to have a wall chart showing which product cleanswhat and a detailed cleaning schedule highlighting daily, weekly andmonthly cleaning schedules.

Ask your chemical supplier for these, as well as procedural guidelinesfor any equipment in the kitchen (or the rest of the nursery for thatmatter), that you are unsure how to clean properly.

Washroom and baby-changing facilities

These areas should be checked every hour or as per the nurseryguidelines. You should ensure that:

- hand soap is available for staff and children

- toilet paper is in every cubicle

- there are no slip hazards from excess water on the floor

- all light bulbs are working correctly

- there is no other hazard or risk.

It is the staff's responsibility to deal with any shortfalls orpotential hazards immediately.

Cleaning schedules should be in place where they can be easilymonitored, and it is good practice to have a wallchart showing whichchemicals are used where. Therefore, if a member of staff has to cleanup a 'spillage', they know exactly what chemicals to use and where. Allstaff should be trained on Control of Substances Hazardous to Health,and your chemical supplier will help you with this either by carryingout training on site or supplying an electronic tutorial.

General hygiene

Hygiene is fun and educational! Most nurseries insist on childrenclearing up toys that they have played with, but cleaning can be builtinto the activities, too - water toys can be rinsed and dried or put onracks to dry, and outdoor toys can be washed down with watering cans.Many children are young enough to find washing the car fun; they may notbe experts, but they enjoy this activity (ensure a risk assessment hasbeen completed before undertaking a hygiene activity) and it is a skillthat will benefit them later in life.

But more importantly, after undertaking any activity or between changesof activity, including indoor to outdoor play, especially before eatingand after going to the toilet, all children (and adults) must wash theirhands. Clean hands, clean nursery.

Specialist Cleaning

From time to time, you may require specialist cleaning to take place -for example, after a closure due to an infectious outbreak, and forkitchen ducts as per fire safety legislation, major body fluid spillageor an annual planned deep clean.

In these circumstances, look for a specialist cleaning company withnursery experience. Insist the work takes place with minimum or nodisruption to the nursery - such as overnight or at the weekend. Alwaysask for a reference and a detailed plan of what is to be cleaned and towhat specification and the cost once work has been completed. Always askfor a detailed report, including digital images, independent swabanalysis and where there has been an infectious outbreak.

Effective hygiene, health and safety is paramount to protectchildren.

For expert help and advice on good hygiene practice in the nurseryenvironment, please contact ToyGuard by calling 0845 300 6181, or visitthe ToyGuard website at www.toyguard.co.uk

THE ANTI-ANTIBACTERIAL SOAP ARGUMENT

Why do TV commercials advertise antibacterial this and antibacterialthat? In fact, it just means they can charge you more. The reality isthat antibacterial products - especially where soap is concerned - arenot a great asset. People are generally poor at washing their hands.Where antibacterial soap is not rinsed off properly (or removed throughthe physical action of paper towels), the bacteria are left co-existingwith weak variants of the active ingredient that kills the bacteria.This weakened version works a bit like homeopathic remedies and helpsthe germs to build up a resistance to the ingredient. This effect hasbeen highlighted as a major contributor to the increase inantibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria.

JARGON BUSTER

Antiseptic - An agent used in or on the body to prevent infection.

Disinfection - An agent or process that destroys micro organisms, butnot usually bacterial spores: it does not necessarily kill all microorganisms, but reduces them to a level which is not harmful to health orto the quality of perishable goods.

Sterilisation - An agent or process that destroys or removes 100 percent of all micro organisms.

10 GOLDEN RULES FOR HANDLING CHEMICALS
1. Be sure you read the labels and follow instructions for use
2. Use any protective clothing provided
3. Do not mix chemicals - this can be harmful
4. Never put chemicals into unmarked containers
5. Never put chemicals into bottles or containers that have other uses -
for eating or drinking, for example
6. Be sure you know what first-aid treatment is required if you
accidentally spill chemicals on yourself or others
7. Store all chemicals safely
8. Report any damaged container, spills or faulty containers to a
supervisor
9. Always follow the safety rules and develop safe working practices
10. Report anything wrong to your supervisor.