8. There have been very few published clinical studies comparing the efficacy of alcohol hand-rubbing with antiseptic hand-washing in healthcare workers during routine patient care. To our knowledge, there has not been a published international study comparing CDC's recommended alcohol hand-rubbing protocol with that of the WHO's. This study will provide important information on the efficacy of alcohol hand-rubbing using the current technique adopted in TTSH (CDC's guidelines), compared with the WHO's recommended 7-step technique for alcohol hand-rubbing and the standard 7-step chlorhexidine hand-washing respectively. This study will also provide local data on the actual time spent on hand hygiene, during everyday practice. The findings from this study will contribute significantly towards understanding hand hygiene practices during routine patient care in our local healthcare setting and hence guide infection control strategies to reduce hospital-acquired infections. Reducing hospital-acquired infections would lead to improved clinical outcomes for our patients.