Hand Washing Reduce Spread of Infectious Diseases By 80% – Expert.

By Murtala Muhammad

Proper Hand washing has been identified as a way of reducing spread of infectious diseases by eighty percent.

The Technical Advisor of USAID funded Integrated Health Program, IHP, Dr. Khalid Abubakar gave the indication at lecture on this year’s Global Hand Washing Day with the theme Our Future is at Hand.

The lecture was organised by the Bauchi State Primary Health Care Development Agency with support from Breakthrough Action Nigeria and IHP held at a private school in Bauchi metropolis.

Dr. Khalid Abubakar stated that proper hand washing also has the capacity to reduce diarrheal and pneumonia diseases by forty and thirty percent respectively.

He encouraged people to imbibe the culture of regular hand washing as one of the ways to prevent themselves from contacting diseases.

In a remark, the Coordinator, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health in the State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Hajiya Jamila Muhammad Inuwa said the aim of organising the lecture was to sensitise the school children on preventiion against Covid-19, cholera and other infection disease.

During the lecture pupils were asked to demonstrate how proper hand washing was being practiced and rewards were given to two who succeeded out of the three pupils selected.

Global Handwashing Day is being celebrated annually on 15th October.