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World Hand Hygiene Day 2025Yellow background poster with the text It might be gloves it's always hand hygiene. there are graphics snaking across the page and the World Health Orgaisation logo is in the top left corner

Every year on 5 May, the World Health Organization (WHO) runs the Save lives: Clean your hands campaign to promote the use of hand hygiene in health care facilities and beyond.

Read more about the Save Lives: Clean your hands campaign on the WHO website. 

The theme for 2025 is 'It might be gloves. It’s always hand hygiene.' 

Regardless of whether gloves are worn, hand hygiene at the right times and in the right way is still one of the most important measures to protect patients and health workers from infections. 


You can help by:  

  • promoting optimal hand hygiene practices (using the appropriate technique and according to the WHO 5 Moments) and the times for appropriate glove use within the health care workflow  
  • raising awareness of the environmental and climate impact of gloves on waste generation and management, especially when used unnecessarily.   

Resources

Check out the WHO’s resources for World Hand Hygiene Day 2025.

Register for these webinars:
Warming up for World Hand Hygiene Day 8 April 2025 11.30 pm NZ time

Campaigning to reduce the use of gloves.  Check out the WHO resources and activities. 

Register for Warming up for World Hand Hygiene Day webinar.  

It might be gloves, it’s always hand hygiene 5 May 2025 11.30 pm NZ time

The environmental and climate impact of glove use, how to optimise hand hygiene action and appropriate glove use. 

Register for it might be gloves, it’s always hand hygiene webinar. 

WHO campaign posters 

Purple poster with the text Practice hand hygiene and use loves appropriately. A winding graphic crosses the middle of the page and the World Health Organisation logo is in the top left Orange background poster with the text Gloves do not replace hand hygiene. A graphic winds across the poster and the World Health Organisation logo is on the top left.

Explore the range of posters available on the WHO website.

Resources from the Australasian College for Infection Prevention and Control

The Australasian College for Infection Prevention and Control (ACIPC) has some great new resources for use in your workplace or organisation to help share the knowledge about the importance of hand hygiene.

Visit the ACIPC website.

ACIPC email signature banner with green background. The main text says It might be gloves. It's always hand hygiene.

As always, we love to hear how you are celebrating World Hand Hygiene Day in your workplace. If you would like to share your ideas and photos, please email us at hhnz@hqsc.govt.nz.

Published: 21 Mar 2022 Modified: 9 Apr 2025