Skin Diseases: Hygiene

(asked on 14th September 2020) - View Source

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the adequacy of their guidance on hand sanitiser for people who cannot use alcohol-based hand rubs due (1) to eczema, (2) to dermatitis, and (3) to other skin conditions.


Answered by
Lord Bethell Portrait
Lord Bethell
This question was answered on 7th October 2020

As Health and Safety Executive guidance for the general public states, which is in line with the World Health Organization (WHO) guidance, alcohol does not have to be ‘active ingredients’ to be effective in hand sanitizer. The WHO recommends that hand sanitiser should contain a minimum of 60% alcohol, but non-alcohol based sanitisers can also be effective when combined with other social distancing measures.

All healthcare workers have access to occupational health assessment and are referred for assessment and treatment in the event of developing skin complications. Using the guidelines, recommendations made by occupational health are followed by National Health Service providers as part of risk assessment and mitigation for the individual and the patient.

Reticulating Splines