Maxtone-Graham: Washing hands aids hygiene

ABOUT 40% of medical cases in the country can be avoided if Papua New Guineans take the time to wash their hands, Health Minister Jamie Maxtone-Graham says.
Maxtone-Graham, who is a staunch advocate of healthy living, said basic hygiene was important and could greatly alleviate the burden on health services throughout the country.
Speaking at the PNG Party fundraising dinner in Lae on Saturday night, he said health services in the country had been allowed to worsen over many years to the state it was in now because of political neglect.
Speaking as one of two deputies of the party, he said it would take 10 years and K14 billion to upgrade infrastructure, equipment and expertise to an operable standard. 
He said the government was now keen on educating people to empower themselves so they could take care of their own health and do away with running to the hospital with ailments they could have been avoided if they stuck to basic health rules.
Maxtone-Graham said basic hygiene like washing hands would see a 40 per cent drop in avoidable diseases.