All posts by brevis-admin

Hand Hygiene, Handwashing Saves Lives

Happy Hands for Students

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Educators know that keeping hands clean is one of the best things kids can do to prevent illness and the spreading of germs to others. Brevis products like GlitterBug Gel and GlitterBug Potion provide fun ways for kids to learn the effectiveness of handwashing techniques.

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Right now there’s another way to get kids excited about hand hygiene. Deb’s Happy Hands Contest educates students about the importance of handwashing while giving them a chance to show their artistic creativity by submitting original designs to be featured on soap dispensers.

Educators can register their school on the website, and submit their students’ designs by December 5. Top finalists in three categories (elementary, middle, and high school) will be announced January 16, and public voting will be open for one month. Winners will be announced March 1, 2017.

Each winning design receives three prizes: a $500 donation to the winning student’s school, a $200 gift card for the student, and up to 500 soap dispensers to display the winning design in the school.

Getting kids involved in hand hygiene awareness in creative, memorable ways– whether through a dispenser design contest, or a GlitterBug demonstration— is a win for everyone.

 

**SPECIAL NOTE:

Brevis is offering a promo-code discount for Fall 2016 that will start Sept. 20 and go through October 31, 2016.

The promo code is “Fall16” which will apply a 10% discount to orders over $25.00.

 

Sources:

http://info.debgroup.com/happyhands

http://www.cdc.gov/handwashing/

http://www.debgroup.com/us

http://www.brevis.com/blog/2016/08/glitterbug-gel-a-primer/

http://www.brevis.com/blog/2016/09/glitterbug-potion/

http://www.brevis.com/blog/2016/08/back-to-school-with-glitterbug/

 

Flu

5 Ways to Help Prevent the Flu

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Flu season is upon us! The flu (or influenza) causes more hospitalizations among young children than any other vaccine-preventable disease. Beyond getting seasonal flu vaccines, what else can be done to protect against getting the flu?

FLU

Here are 5 actions to take every day:

Stay home when you are sick. Nobody likes to fall behind in their day-to-day tasks, so it can be tempting to go to work or school, or even run errands when you’re sick. Staying home, however, will help others from catching your illness. (Plus, you need to rest so you can recover quickly!) Also, avoid close contact with others who are sick.

 

Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze, throw the tissue away after you use it, then wash your hands. Teach children to cough or sneeze into their elbow (if a tissue isn’t available) rather than their hands to minimize spread of germs.

 

Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth. It may take a concentrated effort to break these habits, but remember: germs spread this way.

 

Clean and disinfect surfaces and objects frequently touched at home, work, or school, especially when someone is sick.

 

Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after coughing or sneezing. Alcohol-based hand rub is another option if soap and water aren’t available.

 

Children and adults alike can make healthy choices at school, work, and home to help prevent catching– and spreading– the flu.

 

Sources:

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/school/index.htm

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/pdf/freeresources/updated/everyday_preventive.pdf

https://pixabay.com/en/allergy-cold-disease-flu-girl-18656/
SPECIAL NOTE:
Brevis is offering a promo-code discount for Fall 2016 that will start Sept. 20 and go through October 31, 2016.
The promo code is “Fall16” which will apply a 10% discount to orders over $25.00.

Handwashing Saves Lives, Infection prevention

GlitterBug Potion

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Not long ago we shared a primer on how to use GlitterBug Gel — a great product for measuring the effectiveness of how hand sanitizer is applied. But what about those of us who don’t use hand sanitizer? If you prefer to wash your hands using soap and water, GlitterBug Potion is for you!

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We usually think of potion as a substance used in mythology or magic; the stuff of fairy tales and imagination. GlitterBug Potion, however, is a real product used to teach good handwashing technique. The potion consists of a UV fluorescent powder mixed in a special hand lotion.

 

To see how GlitterBug Potion works, apply the Potion as you would any other lotion. Next, wash your hands as you normally would with soap and water. Dry your hands thoroughly, then check under the light (such as the GlitterBug Disclosure Center). Are any areas of your hands glowing? Those are the areas you need to wash more thoroughly.

 

Commonly missed areas include the knuckles, sides of the hands, and fingernail area. Consider using a GlitterBug Hand and Nail Scrub Brush to reach those tough spots.

 

For cleaner hands, a magic wand won’t help you, but GlitterBug Potion will!

 

Handwashing Saves Lives

Back to School with GlitterBug

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With so many kids going back to school, it’s a great time to remind everyone of the importance of washing their hands.

Who better to teach a hand-washing lesson to kids than kids themselves? Let’s see what these kids have to say.

Share the video with kids you know. Help them understand the importance of washing their hands the right way – “The GlitterBug Way.”

 

Contaminated Water, Hand Hygiene

What We Can Learn from Rio’s Contaminated Water Situation

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The 2016 Olympics have come to a close and many are continuing a discussion which has been going on since before the games began: What’s the deal with Rio’s contaminated water?

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The world watched as athletes competed in water visibly tainted and unclear. However, It was clear that their methods of water sanitation and their push to clean the water permanently were unsuccessful.

 

The World Health Organization (WHO) advises the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Local Organizing Committee (LOC) on health issues related to the games. Recommendations for this year’s games included water quality testing in recreational waters, particularly those used by athletes competing in sailing, rowing, canoeing, and swimming events. Most common of illnesses associated with polluted recreational water exposure is mild gastroenteritis. Others include respiratory infections, and skin and ear infections.  

 

And yet most athletes were able to stay healthy despite unsatisfactory water conditions. How did they do it? Andy Hunt, CEO of the governing body World Sailing, reported on precautions taken by sailors in Rio. “Everyone has been very careful in using hand hygiene, washing down clothing, boats, and so on.”

 

Avoiding exposure to contaminated water isn’t always possible, especially while traveling. The general well-being of the athletes throughout the games only validates what we already know: proper hand hygiene is key in preventing illness.

 

Sources:

http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/water-quality/recreational/rio-water-quality-qa-julyupdate.pdf?ua=1

http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/bathing/statement-rio-water-quality/en/

http://www.wkbw.com/sports/olympics/rio-2016/water-to-remain-filthy-in-rio-after-olympics

https://pixabay.com/en/olympia-summer-olympics-1539043

Handwashing Saves Lives, Infection prevention

Olympians and Spectators: Wash Your Hands!

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The world’s eyes have been focused on Rio since the Olympic Games opened on August 5. With Brazil having been in the news this year because of a massive Zika outbreak, it’s no surprise many have been concerned for the health of Olympic athletes and spectators alike. Health officials, however, aren’t concerned with a big risk for spread of the virus.

Why?

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), Zika is classified as ‘low risk’ among health concerns surrounding the Olympics. It’s winter in Brazil, so mosquitoes (whose bites are believed to be the primary method Zika spreads) aren’t as much of a concern as they would be in warmer months. Additionally, with authorities working to kill off and control mosquito populations, the number of new cases recorded has steadily declined for months.

Meanwhile, influenza is listed as being ‘high risk,’ as it’s flu season in Brazil. John McConnell, editor of Lancet Infectious Diseases, said, “People are much more likely to go home carrying flu than Zika virus, and flu is a much more dangerous disease.” With all the press coverage about Zika it’s important to remember that in the United States, Zika has killed one person, whereas the flu kills more than 30,000 people each year.

The best way to avoid the flu, aside from getting a flu vaccine, is to practice good health habits such as thorough and frequent hand washing. Proper hand hygiene remains one of the best ways to protect yourself and your family from getting sick.

Here’s to all the Olympic athletes and spectators who will soon be traveling to their homes from Rio! We hope you had a memorable time, and we hope you remember to wash your hands!

Sources:

http://www.vox.com/2016/7/20/12209168/2016-rio-olympics-zika-virus-health-risks
http://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/habits.htm

Image source:

https://pixabay.com/en/circles-olympics-olympic-games-blue-1573621/

Glitterbug, Hand Hygiene, Handwashing Saves Lives

GlitterBug Gel: A Primer

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Having clean hands is always important, but using soap and water isn’t always practical. In hospital and other patient care situations, as health care workers move from one patient to another, a soap-and-water washing doesn’t always contribute to overall time-effectiveness.

 

Hand sanitizer (also referred to as alcohol-based handrub) is a well-researched, efficacious product which is considered to fulfill the highest standards of safety in regards to infection prevention. Its creation and widespread availability has revolutionized modern hand hygiene practices.

 

If you use hand sanitizer, GlitterBug Gel is a great product for you. It teaches and evaluates the effectiveness of how hand sanitizer is applied. It looks and feels like sanitizer, and though it’s 60% alcohol, it doesn’t kill germs. Simply apply as you would regular hand sanitizer, and check under the light. Any glowing areas on your hands indicate a thorough application of sanitizer.

 

Watch this quick video to see how it’s done:

Use GlitterBug Gel to help you see how well your hand sanitizer is working.

 

Source: http://www.who.int/gpsc/tools/faqs/system_change/en/

Glitterbug

Glitterbug Gel or Potion? That is the question . . .

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Good handwashing technique is paramount to infection prevention. Most adults would likely say they know how to wash their hands; after all, it’s something they’ve been doing since childhood. Many might be surprised, however, to find out how much residue can be left on their skin after a routine washing. And though it can feel awkward to think about having to learn how to wash your hands—especially as an adult—doing so can make a world of difference in preventing the spread of germs.

Handwashing
GlitterBug Gel and GlitterBug Potion are excellent products to aid in teaching proper hand hygiene to kids and adults alike. Both are intended to show how effective your current hand-cleaning methods are, and in turn, both products teach better techniques for hand-washing.

 

If both products do the same thing, what are the differences between the two? And which do you need?

 

A main difference can be found in the name of the products. GlitterBug Gel is just that: a gel. It is not a sanitizer and won’t kill germs, but it feels like a sanitizer. GlitterBug Potion is a hand lotion with a special UV fluorescent powder mixed in to show which part of your hands need a little more cleaning.

 

Which product you need depends on how you’re cleaning your hands. If you mainly use hand sanitizer, you should use GlitterBug Gel. If you usually wash with soap and water, GlitterBug Potion is for you.
Whichever way you wash your hands, a refresher on how you’re doing is a great way to learn how to be better in preventing the spread of germs.

Antibiotics in our food, Food-borne illness

Antibiotics in the foods we eat: Why the drugs are losing their power

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The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have called for an end to the nontherapeutic use of drugs in animals that are used to treat human disease. Why? The short answer is giving healthy livestock these drugs breeds superbugs that can infect people.

Here’s a great explanation from the Union of Concerned Scientists: “Bacteria become resistant to antibiotics through overexposure to them. Hardy strains of the bacteria survive the exposure and pass on that resistance trait to successive generations. And they also pass the trait across to other bacteria that are unrelated, including some that cause human disease. Eventually the antibiotic wipes out all the vulnerable bacteria, and only resistant bacteria remain. Then the drug is no longer effective.”

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) started testing retail meat and poultry for antibiotic-resistant bacteria in 1996. It was not until 2008, however, that Congress required companies to report the quantity of antibiotics they sold for use in agriculture to the FDA. Why is that so important? According to a report from the New York Times, “In 2011, drugmakers sold nearly 30 million pounds of antibiotics for livestock — the largest amount yet recorded and about 80 percent of all reported antibiotic sales that year. The rest was for human health care.”

That’s right, 80 percent of antibiotics are being used for livestock! That means the meat and poultry we humans eat give resistant bacteria a direct route to us — right through the grocery store and into our kitchens. But combating resistance requires monitoring both the prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in our food, as well as the use of antibiotics on livestock.

In March of this year, McDonald’s announced a plan to require chicken suppliers to stop using antibiotics important to human medicine within two years. Chicken supplier Tyson Inc. reported they’ll also stop giving chickens the same antibiotics used by humans; Tyson noted it has reduced the use of antibiotics effective in humans by more than 84 percent since 2011. The National Chicken Council also released a statement that says chicken producers have been working to phase out the use of antibiotics important in human medicine to promote growth in animals.

Restaurant chains Chipotle and Panera already say they serve chicken raised without antibiotics, but the announcement by McDonald’s is notable because of its size. McDonald’s has more than than 35,000 locations on Earth, and the U.S. has the highest concentration of them — about one for every 20,000 residents according to The Guardian’s Datablog. Compare that to Chipotle’s nearly 1,800 U.S. locations and Panera’s almost 1,900 U.S. locations.

There is more than enough scientific evidence to justify curbing the rampant use of antibiotics for livestock, yet the food and drug industries are fighting proposed legislation to reduce these practices. What do you think about antibiotic use in agriculture and livestock? Should they all move to using drugs that are not considered medically important for humans? Share your insights now in the comments section.

 

Food-borne illness, Handwashing Saves Lives, Infection prevention

The filthy dirty truth about handwashing and hygiene in public restrooms

hygiene habits in public restrooms

We’ve all been there: You have to “go” and you’re nowhere near home so you have a choice: shame yourself or (gasp!) use a public restroom. So you consult a phone app to find the closest clean restroom (yes, there are several apps) and enroute to your designated clean loo you strategize how to get your business done and come out unscathed. How do you get IN or OUT of the restroom without touching the door handle, for instance? Do you use your elbow? Do you grab a tissue or moist wipe from the pack you always keep handy? Same goes for the stall door. And what if the seat is in the wrong position? You can always employ the squat-and-hover method and flush the toilet with your foot.

Discussing the variations is like watching a skit on Saturday Night Live. Let’s say you flushed the toilet with your foot. Well, that means the next person might use their hands and whatever was on your shoe is now on their hands. And vice versa. You used a paper towel to open the door, but there’s no garbage to dispose of the now dirty towel…so where do you put it? And let’s say you placed your handbag or backpack on the hook on the stall door, but what was on the hook before you got there? Because you may be taking it with you. It’s a vicious cycle. Is there a solution?

After one of the largest handwashing surveys in the UK revealed some “deplorable habits” recently, a company there launched a product to promote hand hygiene and shame bad hygiene by displaying rates on screens in bathrooms. The product was piloted across different types of businesses such as education, office and retail facilities as well as other sectors where good hand hygiene is essential—and the company claims the “informal nudge” and increased peer pressure helped drive good behavior rates up dramatically. “Hand washing rates rose to 90 per cent within two days of the data being displayed, before stabilising between 80 per cent and 85 per cent.”

Of course, we never tire of handwashing discussions around here. Now, another new survey from restroom fixture manufacturer Bradley Corporation has gone and given us more fodder by covering the actions many of us take to avoid touching anything in a restroom. Sounds oddly familiar and we’re not alone: 57% of people using public restrooms operate the flusher with their foot; 55% use paper towels with the door handle; 45% open and close the door with behind (we assume that’s a hip or bum); and 69% of people use their elbows to avoid all contact in a public restroom.

We look forward to a world where 100% of respondents are washing their hands, but in the meantime we’ll take an increase in people using paper towels, elbows, feet and bums, too.  Of course, there’s always room for improvement when it comes to the state of public restrooms. In fact, an unpleasant restroom experience can create a damaging and lasting impression for a business—and that’s bad for business. According to the Bradley survey, the majority of consumers believe an unclean restroom indicates poor management (69%), lowers their opinion of the company (67% ) and signifies that the business doesn’t care about customers (63%).

Which brings us to another improvement we’re thrilled to see in the business of taking care of our business: clean public restroom apps. There are several out there and we’re not making a recommendation, but it can’t be worse than going to a public restroom without some kind of head’s up.

  • Sit or Squat is brought to you by none other than Charmin, the makers of toilet paper and it has one purpose: to identify bathrooms around you and let you know if they’re nice and clean . . . or not so nice. This app is crowd-sourced, but it receives mixed feedback from users.
  • Toilet Finder uses the slogan “May the flush be with you” and claims its database to includes more than 70,000 public-accessible restrooms.
  • Whizzer claims to be the ultimate bathroom locator and lets you search by current location to find clean restrooms, those that are open late at night, and those with showers. You can also search to include baby changing stations, feminine hygiene products, and can even specify just how clean you want the restroom to be. You can even follow them on Twitter!
  • Diaroogle.com calls themselves “the premier toilet search engine” and when the time comes for us to go, we really hope they’re right.
  • Bathroom Scout offers turn-by-turn navigation can lead you directly to blessed relief. If imagery is available on street view, “Bathroom Scout” can also show you the location around the bathroom, providing added peace of mind.
  • Where to Wee is an app that helps you find and rate restrooms worldwide. “Whether it’s a road-trip that never seems to end, or an endless line in front of the women’s restroom: when you gotta go, you gotta know.