Hand hygiene: an extension project

Introduction: Hand hygiene is of paramount importance for maintaining health and preventing illnesses. The Programa Saúde na Escola (PSE) presents the teaching of this topic in schools as a strategy to enable autonomy, self-care, the guarantee of the right to health, and the full development of students. Thus, this theme was selected as an extension project and took place in the elementary schools of the municipality of Catanduva on May 9, 2023, in the morning and afternoon sessions, with the partnership of the Liga de Medicina de Família e de Comunidade and Humanizarte, an extension group of UNIFIPA. Objective: To inform about the importance of hand hygiene and encourage good hygiene habits to prevent diseases. Methods: The project consisted of interactive discussions about the importance of hand hygiene, the correct procedure for performing it, and subsequently, the practice of the correct procedure guided and monitored by medical students. They used gouache paint for visualization and interaction with the students. At the end, a coloring drawing on the theme was handed out for the children to take the learned information home. Results: The project involved 40 medical students and 3 professors, reaching 70 children from 3 different schools. The children displayed interest and interacted easily during the discussions and the practical session. Conclusion: Through this project, it was observed that the interaction between medical students and the schoolchildren was beneficial for both parties. Moreover, despite the children's ease of interaction, they still faced difficulties in properly washing their hands. Therefore, it is essential for this topic to be consistently addressed in schools.