Continuing its efforts to ensure children’s health in schools during the new academic year, Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) has urged parents and teachers to give special focus on handwashing. 
“Proper and regular handwashing is essential for children as it ensures hygiene and averts infection,” said Dr Mohamed Rahmathulla Shafeeq, assistant executive director of infection prevention and control at HMC. While sharing tips on infection control, he asked children to wash hands after using bathrooms, before and after eating food and after getting back from the playground. 
“Proper and regular handwashing at school and outside keeps children free of infection. And schools should have proper facilities that help students easily wash their hands and maintain proper hygiene,” he said, adding availability of washing sinks and liquid soap should be ensured by school authorities. 
“Sinks should be placed in a location easily accessible for all students. And we recommend liquid soaps as soap bars cause infection to be transmitted from an infected child to others while it’s used for handwashing,” the HMC physician said.
Paper napkins should be made available and children asked to make use of them after washing hands. “Possibility of infection is high if the hands remain wet,” he explained.
Citing that some of the children fail to get enough time to meet handwashing and hygiene requirements, Dr Shafeeq urged the school authorities to ensure that adequate break time is available for all. “Inadequacy of time can create inconvenience for students and this should be addressed. And all students should be given bathroom break if they demand it during class time,” he suggested.
He asked parents to teach their children personal hygiene measures. “Children should be asked to take regular baths and brush teeth. And they should be sent to school with cleaned washed clothes,” he said. 
Dr Shafeeq also urged school authorities to regularly clean and maintain water cooler dispensers and air conditioning units in order to ensure they do not transmit anything harmful.
Studies have shown that school children absenteeism rates due to sickness and illnesses are reduced by almost 40% with these precautions, he added.
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