Rāngi Horoi Ringa
World Hand Hygiene Day 2025
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
You can continue to promote the theme for 2025 "It might be gloves. It's always hand hygiene", using these resources.
Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care:
Resources from the Australasian College for Infection Prevention and Control:
Resources from the WHO:
Video - It Might Be Gloves...But It's ALWAYS Hand Hygiene
Webinar recording: 5 May 2025 World Hand Hygiene Day
WHO campaign posters :
Explore the range of posters available on the WHO website.
If you have any questions please email us at hhnz@hqsc.govt.nz.
Here are some photos of healthcare facilities celebrating World Hand Hygiene Day 2025 across the motu.