The hands of 36 nurses and 21 nonnursing hospital employees were tested by culture with a modification of the broth wash technique. Seventy-five percent of the nurses and 81% of the nonnurses were found to harbor yeasts on their hands; 58% of nurses and 38% of nonnurses were carrying Candida spp.
Clinical nurse specialist surveillance, management, and leadership following project implementation are valuable strategies for continued optimal patient outcomes.
This study compared three methods for the detection of yeasts on the hands of 30 nurses: (i) direct finger impressions on inhibitory mold agar plates, (ii) bag washes in brain heart infusion broth, and (iii) bag washes in brain heart infusion broth supplemented with gentamicin and vancomycin. The antimicrobial agentsupplemented bag wash method identified the greatest number of yeast carriers and yielded the most yeast isolates, especially non-C. albicans Candida spp.
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