Deb Group has donated more than 18,000 bottles of Deb InstantFOAM hand sanitizer to the World Health Organization (WHO) to assist efforts in combatting the spread of Ebola virus in West African countries.

Organized by the WHO and supported by members of Private Organizations for Patient Safety (POPS), of which Deb Group is a founding member, the donation initiative is necessitated to support those healthcare providers and communities directly involved with handling the deadly Ebola epidemic that has already claimed over 4,500 lives.

Whilst the Ebola disease has a high mortality rate, the virus itself is easy to inactivate outside the body by soap, alcohol-based disinfectants, bleach, sunlight and high temperatures or drying. According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, “Ebola virus survives only a short time on surfaces that are in the sun or have dried. It can survive for a longer time on clothes or materials which have been stained with blood or other bodily fluids.”

Ebola is an ‘enveloped’ virus which belongs to the family Filoviridae. There is no FDA-approved vaccine available for Ebola. However, the CDC recommends washing hands frequently or using an alcohol-based sanitizer. [1][2] For many healthcare providers and communities dealing with the Ebola virus, hand hygiene is an important part of a multifaceted infection prevention program. However, the ready availability of soap and water is not always possible or convenient. Therefore, the use of alcohol-based disinfectants, which require no soap or water, can often be the easiest, quickest and most convenient method for providing effective hand hygiene.

‘Deb InstantFOAM’ hand sanitizer is an FDA approved alcohol based sanitizer and has been independently successfully tested as being effective against enveloped viruses.[3] Bryan Anderson, Deb Group CEO commented: “The Ebola outbreak is devastating. Deb, along with other POPS partners, is working with the WHO to share resources with countries currently in need of hand sanitizer products. Given we have a product that meets the FDA guidelines, we have provided a donation to the WHO for distribution to where it is needed in West Africa”.

For more information, visit www.debgroup.com.

[1] http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/prevention/index.html

[2] http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/abroad/vhf-manual.html

[3] Report 100332-402; Determination of Virucidal Efficacy using an In-Vitro Time Kill Method – Biosciences Laboratories inc.

About Deb Group

Headquartered in the U.K. and with North American headquarters in Charlotte, N.C., Deb Group provides dedicated skin care programs for a wide range of industries and organizations that value their employee and customer well-being. Customers benefit from Deb’s deep expertise in skin care through improved health and safety, enhanced environmental sustainability and measurable economic value. Deb products are available in at least 100 countries, and it is estimated that more than 150 million people use Deb products every day in the workplace. In 2014, Deb acquired Stoko Skincare to create the world’s leading away from home skin care company. To learn more about how Deb Group’s approach to skin and hand care and market leadership can address business needs, please visit www.debgroup.com.