hand hygiene guidelines for healthcare personnel published by the centers for disease control and prevention recommend that alcohol-based hand gels and foams be used routinely, with intermittent throungh hand washing with soaps throughout the day.studies have shown that the rate of compliance by the healthcare workers with the the hand washing guidelines is lower than 50% partly because of the posibility/fear of skin irritation with the frequent use of soaps and partly due to lack of time. this problem could be addressed by the development of soaps and other skin-care products that have sufficient residual antibacterial activity on the skin to inactivate newly introduced bacteria.