Everyone washes hands in a Mexican restaurant

Frequent advice columns and newspaper features bemoan the fact that few Americans bother to wash their hands after using public toilets. We could take a lesson from Mexico.

Perhaps the guarantee of hand washing is an unintended consequence of saving money on plumbing fixtures, but it works.

I wandered into a small restaurant in Guadalajara well off the beaten tourist paths. After ordering, I went to the restroom to wash up. There were two restroom doors a few feet apart, and, between the doors in the dining area was a sink, soap dispenser, and paper towels. Inside the men's room was a toilet and nothing more. I assume the women's was the same.

All the regulars knew there were no washing facilities in the restrooms. Instead of duplicating sinks in both rooms, there was one common wash basin where everyone in the place could see it. If anyone, man or woman, came out of the restroom and did not wash hands, everyone in the restaurant would know it.

I doubt we could get away with such a system here in The Land of the Free, where we are all bound in straitjackets of rules and regulations. Health bureaucracies and building departments would never allow such a simple, inexpensive, and effective guarantee that all employees and patrons would wash their hands after using public toilets.