Association between Hospital Nurses’ Perception of Patient Safety Management and Standard Precaution Adherence: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Standard precautions should be applied to prevent health care-associated infections during every nursing activity. However, adherence to standard precautions was reported to be inadequate. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the rates of standard precaution adherence and the association between perception of patient safety management and standard precaution adherence. In this cross-sectional descriptive study, a convenience sample of nurses was recruited from a university-affiliated teaching hospital in Seoul, Korea. Data were collected using a structured self-report questionnaire. Among the 332 questionnaires returned (response rate: 94.9%), a total of 329 nurses were analyzed. In the present study, the overall standard precaution adherence rate was approximately 53.5%. The multiple linear regression results revealed that participants’ perceptions of patient safety management were only significantly associated with standard precaution adherence after adjusting other covariates (β = 0.412, p < 0.001). Nurse supervisors should focus more on raising awareness about nurses’ perception of patient safety management based on the specific work environment, such as the total number of nurses working together and the nurse-to-patient ratio. Nurse educators should develop integrated curricula to help graduate nurses transition smoothly into professional practice and enhance adherence to standard precautions in diverse health care settings.

Nurses’ Adherence to Patient Safety Principles: A Systematic Review

“…The general characteristics of the selected studies (n = 6) are presented in Table 1. The studies were published from 2014 to 2019 and were conducted in Australia [48], Finland [49], Norway [50], South Korea [51], Sweden [52], and the UK [53].…”

“…Three studies used a survey design [50][51][52]; one study used an observational method [53]; one applied an observational intervention design [49]; and another one was a three-stage pre-post time-series study [48]. Except for one study [49] that was published in the Finnish language, all other articles were written in English.…”

“…Diverse foci were evident in the studies: adherence to patient-safety principles on the management of peripheral venous catheters [52], surgical hand rubbing instructions [49], double-checking policies of medicines' preparation and administration [53], handover from the intensive care unit (ICU) to the cardiac ward [48], cardiac monitoring and surveillance standards [50], and care-associated infection precautions [51]. ral Characteristics of the Selected Studies general characteristics of the selected studies (n = 6) are presented in Table 1.…”

“…The blished from 2014 to 2019 and were conducted in Australia [48], Finland [49], Norw rea [51], Sweden [52], and the UK [53]. ee studies used a survey design [50][51][52]; one study used an observational method [5 n observational intervention design [49]; and another one was a three-stage pre-po dy [48]. Except for one study [49] that was published in the Finnish language, a ere written in English.…”

“…Variations in nurses' adherence to patient-safety principles could be attributed to their varied levels of knowledge and attitudes. Examples included nurses' incomplete adherence to infection-control principles, which encompassed the daily inspection of peripheral venous catheter sites, surgical hand rubbing, disinfection of hands, and the use of disposable gloves and aprons when exposed to patient excretions [49,51,52]. Other examples were related to the principles of medicines' management: inappropriate speed of intravenous bolus, incorrect medicines' preparation, administration at incorrect times, problematic labelling of flush syringes and administration of intravenous antibiotics without flushing, not receiving the medicines' complete dose by patients, and incorrect mixing of medicines with diluent [53].…”