New Data Shows Pandemic Concerns, Hand Hygiene Have Significantly Decreased
A new survey shows that handwashing has declined 25 percent from when the Covid-19 pandemic first hit.
As Americans move into the third calendar year of the Covid-19 pandemic, most public health protections and guidelines have loosened. For instance, the CDC has recently said it would loosen masking guidelines and social distancing isn’t promoted nearly as much as it once was by public health organizations.
A new survey from Bradley Corporation shows that anxiety and actions surrounding the coronavirus have relaxed as the pandemic rages on. Currently, only 41 percent of respondents said they were very concerned about contracting the virus, a significant drop from January 2021 when 53 percent expressed a high level of concern.
The Health Hand Washing Survey also indicated that fear of contracting the virus has declined based the way that people have chosen to greet each other. Back in April of 2020, 67 percent of respondents said they would prefer to wave hello and 49 percent said they specifically avoided shaking hands. Now, 44 percent say they will use a wave to greet others and 36 percent say they are still avoiding hand shakes all together.
The survey also found that handwashing dropped significantly over the last two years. In the spring of 2020, Americans were washing their hands over ten times a day. New data from the January 2022 Heathy Handwashing Survey found that this dropped by 25 percent to 7.8 times per day.
“Germ avoidance and handwashing diligence are two habits that should always be a priority,” says Jon Dommisse, vice president of marketing and corporate communication for Bradley Corp. “No matter the time of year or situation we’re in, lathering up, scrubbing thoroughly, rinsing and drying your hands is something that should be done consistently without fail.”
Despite the decline in how many times Americans wash their hands, they are still washing them thoroughly. The survey found that 63 percent of respondents still follow the CDC guidance of lathering up and scrubbing down for a minimum of 20 seconds. Just 17 percent of the population say they only take 5 to 10 seconds to wash their hands.
For more information about this survey, visit www.bradleycorp.com/handwashing.