Health Care Workers and Standard Precautions: Perceptions and Determinants of Compliance in the Emergency and Trauma Triage of a Tertiary Care Hospital in South India

Abstract

Background. Careful adherence to standard precautions can protect both health care workers (HCWs) and patients from infections. The present study identified the perceptions and compliance with the use of standard precautions and assessed the determinants of noncompliance among the HCWs in an emergency and trauma triage centre. Methods. A cross-sectional study using a semistructured questionnaire was carried out to collect the relevant information from the study participants. Results. A total of 162 HCWs were recruited into the study, who reported varying degrees of compliance with standard precautions. While most of them declared the use of hand rub (95%) and gloves (77%), reported use of protective eye gear and outer protective clothing was very low (22 and 28%, resp.). Despite a perceived risk of exposure to blood-borne infections, 8% of the HCWs had not completed the hepatitis B vaccination schedule. About 17% reported at least one needle stick injury in the past year but only 5.6% received medical attention. Conclusion. Inadequate adherence to standard precautions among health care providers warrants new training and monitoring strategies. Establishment of an effective occupational health cell incorporating these elements including periodic surveillance could be the way forward.

Knowledge and practices regarding standard precautions among health functionaries of peripheral health institutions of Haryana

“…Likewise, in comparison to the study from south India where about 28% of the respondents claimed using outer protective clothing when indicated and in developed countries where a whopping 62% consistently used these. 4,11 Doctors were better than nurses in almost all aspects of compliance including hand washing, as shown by other studies too. 12 Regarding eye protection, our study showed that none of the HCWs was compliant.…”

“…These practices aim to both protect health care workers (HCWs) and prevent them from transmitting the infections to their patients. 4,5 Despite the availability of detailed guidelines, the awareness and practice of standard precautions vary among HCWs and have been found to be inadequate in both developed and developing countries. [6][7][8] Though many studies could be quoted regarding the practice of standard precautions among HCWs in various urban hospitals of India, there is lack of information about the same among HCWs functioning in peripheral health institution settings.…”

Factors Affecting The Compliance Of Myanmar Nurses In Performing Standard Precaution

“…However, some studies show that compliance with standard precautions among nurses is still sub-optimal and inconsistent (Efstathiou, Papastavrou, Raftopoulos & Merkouris, 2011a;Gebresilassie, Kumei & Yemane, 2014;Punia, Nair & Shetty, 2014;Eljedi & Dalo, 2014;Jackson, Lowton & Griffiths, 2014;Takimani, 2015;Abu Bakar, Haruna, Teryila, Hamina & Ahmadu, 2015).…”

Compliance to standard precautions among nurses working in Qassim hospitals in KSA

“…Worldwide, approximately three million HCWs experience percutaneous exposure to blood-borne pathogens each year. Various exposures can be prevented through careful compliance to universal precaution [7]. Nurses represent the largest percentage of the health care workers and they are the "core of the health care system".…”