Hygiene practices including hand and surface disinfection form part of our first line of defence by helping to reduce the spread of the infections such as COVID-19. These interventions also have an impact on many common infections such as cold and seasonal flu. The pharmacy team are the most accessible healthcare provider and are a convenient source of advice for patients and public in the maintenance of appropriate hand and surface hygiene practices.

Aim:
To explain the benefits of hand and surface disinfection in stopping the transmission of a range of common infections that are transmitted in the home and everyday life setting and profile the role the pharmacy team can play in providing patient and public education on disinfection in disease containment and management.

Learning objectives:
1. Explain the importance of hand and surface disinfection
2. List common infections/conditions where hand or surface transmission plays a role
3. Discuss the evidence-base for disinfection practice including use of appropriate disinfectants
4. Describe the role that pharmacist and their team can play in advising and education patients and public about disinfection.


Moderator:
-Cátia Caneiras, Professor and Coordinator, Microbiology Laboratory of Environmental Health University of Lisbon, Portugal

Panelists:
-Sally Bloomfield, Honorary Professor London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK
-Dalal Hammoudi, Assistant Professor Chairperson; Pharmaceutical Sciences Department School of Pharmacy; Lebanese International University, Lebanon
-Mirfin Mpundu, Director, ReAct Africa International Centre for Antimicrobial Resistance, Zambia