95 in 100 people claim to wash their hands after using the toilet. Only 65 in 100 really do.

Cleaning your hands is one of the most important actions anyone can carry out to prevent infection. Since 5 May 2016, an Olympic-style torch relay has been touring the UK to promote this vital and easy task that saves lives.

Welcomed by Michele Owen, Deputy Chief Nurse at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham (QEHB), and the hospital’s Infection Prevention and Control team, the torch arrived earlier today (Thursday 7 July) and will begin to visit various wards and departments to highlight how washing your hands can genuinely save lives.

Visiting departments where the risk of infection can be high, such as the Burns Unit, and UHB’s elderly care wards, staff including catering assistants, consultants, receptionists and nurse specialists all held the torch in their departments, with the torch being disinfected in between each location.

For patients within areas such as the Burns Unit, hand washing is fundamental. Clinical Nurse Specialist in Infection Prevention and Control, Craig Bradley, said: “In patients where we see large wounds, such as we see with burns, or patients who have had invasive surgery, hand washing is essential to avoid passing on infections that could become very problematic for them - that’s why it is imperative that not only staff, but visitors and patients themselves know that cleaning your hands is crucial.”

Craig, who also serves on the board of the Infection Prevention Society (IPS) – which has masterminded the campaign – grabbed the opportunity to "spread the message, and not the bugs" by adding: “It is startling that lots of our visitors and patients don’t know that 8 out of 10 infectious diseases are spread by touch.

“Passing on bacteria and infections with our hands is almost entirely avoidable by washing our hands in soap and water, or by simply using the hand gel that is available around the hospital.”

The hand hygiene campaign aim also aims to let parents and carers know that many cases of diarrhoea, which often lead to uncomfortable days off work, or limiting your social life, could be avoided by almost 50% if we all took part in the gold standard of excellent hand hygiene – by using humble soap and water to wash our hands.

Statistics from studies highlighted by the Infection Prevention Society (IPS) show how integral hand hygiene should be for all. For example, in schools it is estimated that children missing days in the classroom because of infections can be cut by 20% by using hand sanitiser.

A further statistic highlighted by the IPS is that respiratory infections can be reduced by almost 17% with good hand hygiene.

Commenting on the statistic, QEHB’s Executive Chief Nurse, Philip Norman, said: “These statistics reveal in vivid detail the importance of making sure that all patients, visitors and staff must take personal responsibility to wash our hands at the right time.

“Older people with dementia often have a much greater risk of respiratory infection, and dementia can also make it harder for older people to look after themselves, particularly throughout the winter months, so it can be a real risk to patients if we are working on the front line and around patients vulnerable to infection, without highlighting how lifesaving clean hands can be.”

One of the more stomach-churning statistics the Infection Prevention Society provides is that, while 95 people in every 100 will claim to wash their hands after using the toilet, in reality only 65 in 100 actually do.

The Hand Hygiene Torch Tour launched on 5 May in each of the UK's capital cities – London, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Wales and Belfast – in Dublin and in Malta to engage the IPS’s international membership.

Events have also been held across the world, including Canada and Romania. The relay will conclude at the IPS National Conference in Harrogate on 26 September.

You can follow the torch’s progress on Twitter using the hashtag #IPSTorchTour16.