Hand Hygiene Essentials

An essential training module that looks at the transmission of potentially pathogenic organisms by contaminated hands. This module is designed to complement existing, basic infection control knowledge and has been developed consistent with relevant global and national recommendations.

• Hand antiseptics
• Hand antiseptics
• Hand hygiene technique
• Surgical hand hygiene technique
• Five moments of hand hygiene
• Hand hygiene and glove use
• Reducing infection rates through better hand hygiene

• Select an appropriate hand antiseptic
• Reduce your risk of irritant contact dermatitis by appropriate hand drying and moisturising as well as correct glove use
• Consistently and correctly perform hand antisepsis
• Follow the ‘Five Moments’ recommendations


The target audience for this module is any clinician or healthcare worker employed in the provision of care in any setting relating to health care.

This material was developed by the content expert listed below. It is presented by a professional presenter.

Cathryn Murphy PhD is a registered nurse currently working for the Australian College of Perioperative Nurses (ACORN) as the ACORN Professional Standards Officer. In that role, Cathryn is responsible for leading and overseeing the development and promotion of ACORN's professional standards, which currently includes but is not limited to the Standards for Perioperative Nursing in Australia (the Standards) now in their 15th edition, ACORN Professional Standards and the Practice Audit Tools (PATs). Cathryn’s career over several decades has covered senior infection prevention positions within the clinical, government, non-government and professional associations in her home country Australia and internationally. She is an Honorary Adjunct Assoc. Professor at Bond University on the Gold Coast, Australia. For more than 20 years Cathryn has provided independent consulting services to a range of clinical, public policy, professional associations and commercial clients throughout the world. Career highlights include working in the USA at the CDC, consulting for the World Health Organization and serving as the elected APIC President in 2010. In 2016 Cathryn became the first non-North American to be awarded APIC’s esteemed Carole de Mille Award for lifetime excellence in and dedication to the field of infection prevention. She is currently a credentialled ACIPC expert, holds the US CIC certification and is a fellow of APIC and also SHEA. Cathryn’s passion for improving patient safety through better and smarter infection control and prevention is unrelenting. Cathryn’s ideas are innovative and practical. From 2019 onwards she looks forward to learning from and giving reliable, high-quality service to, her professional peers and colleagues particularly those involved in infection control and prevention and perioperative care and nursing. See Educator Profile