Hand washing is particularly important before touching the eye, mouth, nose or abraded skin. Other “wash immediately” events are: contact with bodily fluids, sneezing, blowing nose, touching nose, using toilet, any bare skin contact with another person or with shared equipment.

Wounds should be covered (properly bandaged).

Personal items (towels, razors, soap) should not be shared. Bathrooms shared by various people should have individual towels and soap. In the massage setting, this may already be required by the local licensing law.

For items that must be shared, they should be wiped down before being given to a new person “with commercial disinfectants or a 1:100 solution of diluted bleach (one tablespoon bleach in one quart water).” If a commercial disinfectant is used, its label should specify it is effective for Staphylococcus aureus. “For disinfection to occur, the surface must be clean, and there must be 10 minutes wet contact time.”

There are precautions to observe when disinfecting with a diluted bleach solution:

“Bleach is inactivated when it comes in contact with organic material such as dirt, blood, and other body fluids. These materials must either be removed first before bleach is applied, or a higher concentration of bleach solution (1:10 dilution) should be used to disinfect surfaces contaminated with organic material.

“Bleach must not be used with ammonia-containing compounds that are found in household cleaners, detergents, and disinfectants. The combination of chlorine and ammonia creates chloramine gas, which is hazardous to humans.

“Bleach can potentially damage or discolor fabrics and synthetic materials such as carpet and upholstery, especially at high concentrations (1:10 dilution).

“Bleach can also damage metal items. Concentrations of bleach stronger than the 1:100 dilution recommended for nonporous surfaces are corrosive to most metals.”

Soiled towels and linen should be held away from the body to avoid contaminating the handler’s clothes. Wearing gloves while handling laundry is a reasonable precaution.

Laundry should be washed in hot water and with bleach.(Naturally, you cannot apply bleach to colored fabrics.) The water should be at least 160 degrees Fahrenheit for 25 minutes.

Laundry should be dried completely in a hot dryer at the highest setting the fabric will tolerate. If laundry is taken to another location to be washed, it should be carried in an impervious container or plastic bag.

You should avoid treating someone with an obvious suspect wound and other signs of MRSA, however, any linen which has touched a wound should be separated from other used linen and washed separately. If not washed immediately, such linen should be stored in a plastic bag. Disposable items which have come in contact with a wound should be separately bagged in plastic before being placed with other trash.

Communal showers should be cleaned frequently. Benches in hot tubs and saunas ought to be treated as shared items (discussed above) and wiped with disinfectant after each use. Persons with open wounds (whether covered or not) should not be allowed to use hot tubs or whirlpools. If they do, the hot tub must be disinfected immediately after use.

Patrons in steam rooms and saunas should be encouraged to place a towel between themselves and the bench. Steam rooms and saunas should be allowed to dry once daily. If they are cleaned with a bleach solution, surfaces should be rinsed well with water before heat is reactivated. Spa pools should contain an appropriate level of chlorine.

Consider painting wooden benches with a waterproof paint to promote cleaning. Wood surfaces require a different concentration of disinfectant than listed above: a 1:10 dilution of household chlorine beach. Again, ten minutes is required for disinfection to occur.

Floors should be cleaned daily with an EPA-approved disinfectant.

There are reports that cases of MRSA have come from eating pork in the Netherlands. The cautious person might want to avoid the meat.

Getting a flu shot is considered by some to be a good prevention. A body weakened by flu is an excellent target for CA-MRSA.

The most basic step in preventing MRSA is washing hands.

Personal items (towels, razors, soap) should not be shared.

Laundry should be washed in hot water and with bleach.