Keith Redway, Emeritus Professor and consultant in Medical Microbiology and hygiene, was quoted in an article by iNews about improved safety during the COVID-19 outbreak.
In the article, Redway said that public toilets, offices and cafes should consider putting bins outside their bathrooms so people can dispose of paper towels on the way out.
He said: “The provision of waste bins outside a washroom, in addition to the ones inside, could be considered an improvement in hygiene practice.”
Redway also suggested that people might wish to carry their own paper towels for additional protection in case they use bathrooms where paper towels aren’t available.
He said: “Paper towels have the advantage that they can be used to turn off a tap and open the door of a washroom without touching any possibly contaminated surface after washing and drying the hands.”
He also noted that electric dryers were less hygienic than paper towels, and said: “Studies show that electric hand dryers have a greater potential to disperse contamination on the hands into the public washroom than disposable, single-use paper towels.”
