Introduction: Hand hygiene is a cornerstone of infection prevention and control and is one of the most important measures for reducing the transmission of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). The hands of healthcare workers can serve as a major vehicle for the transmission of pathogenic microorganisms within healthcare settings. Despite the established importance of hand hygiene, compliance among healthcare workers remains suboptimal.
Materials and Methods: A prospective observational study was conducted over a two-month period in the acute medical and surgical wards of a tertiary care hospital. Twenty observation sessions, each lasting 20–30 minutes, were conducted using the World Health Organization (WHO) Hand Hygiene Observation Tool based on the WHO Five Moments for Hand Hygiene. During each session, opportunities for hand hygiene were identified, and the corresponding hand hygiene actions performed by healthcare workers were recorded. Hand hygiene compliance was calculated by comparing the number of hand hygiene actions performed with the total number of observed hand hygiene opportunities.
Results: A total of 139 hand hygiene opportunities were observed. The overall hand hygiene compliance rate among healthcare workers was 56.98%. Compliance was higher among nursing staff (59.37%) than among nursing students (54.44%). Compliance varied across the WHO Five Moments for Hand Hygiene. The highest compliance was observed after risk of exposure to body fluids (88.88%), followed by before a clean/aseptic procedure (66.66%) and after touching a patient (66.66%). Lower compliance was observed after touching patient surroundings (47.05%), while the lowest compliance was recorded before touching a patient (30.23%).
Conclusion: The findings demonstrate suboptimal hand hygiene compliance among the observed healthcare workers, particularly before patient contact. The baseline findings emphasize the need for regular education, direct observation, feedback, and continuous quality-improvement initiatives to strengthen adherence to recommended hand hygiene practices and reduce the risk of healthcare-associated infections.
Hand Hygiene; Five Moments for Hand Hygiene; Hand Hygiene Compliance; Healthcare Workers; Infection Prevention and Control; Healthcare-Associated Infections
Introduction: Hand hygiene is a cornerstone of infection prevention and control and is one of the most important measures for reducing the transmission of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). The hands of healthcare workers can serve as a major vehicle for the transmission of pathogenic microorganisms within healthcare settings. Despite the established importance of hand hygiene, compliance among healthcare workers remains suboptimal.
Materials and Methods: A prospective observational study was conducted over a two-month period in the acute medical and surgical wards of a tertiary care hospital. Twenty observation sessions, each lasting 20–30 minutes, were conducted using the World Health Organization (WHO) Hand Hygiene Observation Tool based on the WHO Five Moments for Hand Hygiene. During each session, opportunities for hand hygiene were identified, and the corresponding hand hygiene actions performed by healthcare workers were recorded. Hand hygiene compliance was calculated by comparing the number of hand hygiene actions performed with the total number of observed hand hygiene opportunities.
Results: A total of 139 hand hygiene opportunities were observed. The overall hand hygiene compliance rate among healthcare workers was 56.98%. Compliance was higher among nursing staff (59.37%) than among nursing students (54.44%). Compliance varied across the WHO Five Moments for Hand Hygiene. The highest compliance was observed after risk of exposure to body fluids (88.88%), followed by before a clean/aseptic procedure (66.66%) and after touching a patient (66.66%). Lower compliance was observed after touching patient surroundings (47.05%), while the lowest compliance was recorded before touching a patient (30.23%).
Conclusion: The findings demonstrate suboptimal hand hygiene compliance among the observed healthcare workers, particularly before patient contact. The baseline findings emphasize the need for regular education, direct observation, feedback, and continuous quality-improvement initiatives to strengthen adherence to recommended hand hygiene practices and reduce the risk of healthcare-associated infections.
Hand Hygiene; Five Moments for Hand Hygiene; Hand Hygiene Compliance; Healthcare Workers; Infection Prevention and Control; Healthcare-Associated Infections