The Effect of Infection Control Course on Nursing Students' Knowledge of and Compliance With Universal Precautions

Abstract

Background Knowledge of and compliance with universal isolation precautions are important issues and were found to be low in many previous studies. However, there were no Jordanian studies that have examined the effect of an infection control teaching course on nursing students' knowledge of and compliance with universal precautions. Purpose This study aimed to assess knowledge and compliance levels, assess the relationships between knowledge and compliance, and examine the effect of infection control teaching courses on knowledge of and compliance with universal precautions among university nursing students. Methods A quasi-experimental pretest/posttest design using a convenient sample of 130 third-year nursing students was applied. The experimental group (n = 60) were third-year nursing students who registered for infection control clinical course for 3 months. On the other side, the control group (n = 70) were students at the same academic level but did not register for the course and never attended the course. Results The mean knowledge of and compliance with universal precaution were quite low, with a mean (SD) of 7.82 (1.98) and 49.36 (11.13) respectively. There was a statistically significant weak positive correlation between knowledge of and compliance with standard precaution (r = 0.28, P = .003). An independent t test indicated a significant effect of the infection control clinical course (t119 = −5.36, P = .01) on knowledge mean score (mean [SD], 15.51 [1.41]) and compliance with universal precaution mean score (mean [SD], 89.00 [10.17]; t119 = 6.26, P = .02) compared to the control group. Paired t test revealed that knowledge and compliance were significantly higher in the posttest than in the pretest in the experimental group compared with the control group. Conclusion Knowledge of and compliance with universal precautions were relatively low among nursing students. The application of an infection control teaching course helps improve both knowledge of and compliance with universal precautions among university nursing students.

Predictors of nursing interns' standard precautions compliance during internship training in four teaching hospitals in Saudi Arabia

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Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Infection Control and Waste Management among Traditional Medicine Practitioners in Bhutan, 2019: A Nationwide Cross-Sectional Survey

“…Among the senior practitioners, only 44% had received in-service training reflecting the need for additional efforts required in training them. Trainings on infection control are shown to increase the healthcare practitioner's knowledge compared to no interventions [14]. In our study, the participant's knowledge of the spread of hospital-acquired microorganisms was poor as the microbiology curriculum is not a part of their training.…”

“…is is receptivity for allopathic principles of infection control among the TM practitioners are an important avenue for intervention. Higher knowledge of infection control is linked with positive attitudes and higher compliance in practice [14,15]. As a part of the government's effort to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Bhutan in 2020, all hospitals including the TMUs adopted infection prevention and control measures, and all health workers including TM practitioners were provided with training.…”

Ensino do controle de infecção: um estudo experimental na graduação em Enfermagem

“…Um estudo experimental realizado na Jordânia com 60 alunos que participaram do curso online e 70 alunos do mesmo período que não participaram avaliou o nível de conhecimento dos alunos sobre precaução universal (Tawalbeh et al, 2019). De maneira geral baixos índices de conhecimento sobre controle de IRAS e sua aplicabilidade foram apresentados nos dois grupos antes da oferta do curso e após a oferta a avaliação do grupo experimental melhorou significativamente.…”