Research Article
Self- Assessment of Hand Hygiene Compliance by Health Workers in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Motlhoki Lillian Dikeledi* and Kaura Doreen Kainyu
Correspondence Address :
Stellenbosch University,
Faculty of Medicine
and Health Sciences,
Department of Nursing and Midwifery Francie Van Zijl Drive,
Bellville Cape town
South Africa
Received on: July 01, 2019, Accepted on: August 07, 2019, Published on: August 18, 2019
Citation: Motlhoki Lillian Dikeledi, Kaura Doreen Kainyu (2019). Self- Assessment of Hand Hygiene Compliance by Health Workers in a Neonatal
Intensive Care Unit
Copyright: 2019 Motlhoki Lillian Dikeledi, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited
Abstract
Background: Healthcare associated infections pose a major significant threat to patients safety. It has been proven to be the most important cause leading to infant mortality and morbidity and resulting in a tremendous burden to healthcare organizations. Lack of hand hygiene compliance by healthcare workers contribute tremendously to morbidity, mortality rate and global and economic burden.
Aim: The purpose of the article is examine hand hygiene self-assessment, perceptionsand attitudes of health workers towards hand hygiene in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Methods: A descriptive, cross sectional study using a structured self-administered questionnaire was utilized where 172 health professionals were recruited. The professionals included nurses and doctors who worked in the Neonatal Unit in a tertiary hospital in Saudi Arabia
Results: Research findings indicated a deficit in perception of self-assessment of health professionals working in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) about their noncompliance to hand hygiene as a method to reduce HAIs. 67.3% of the respondents viewed their co-workers being compliant with hand hygiene guidelines 82.4% of the respondents viewed non-compliance with hand hygiene after removal/taking off gloves as a factor that presented significant risk of passing infections on to patients.
Conclusion: Continuous reinforcement of hand hygiene compliance culture is the key to prevent infants mortality and morbidity in the Neonatal Intensive Care Units. Healthcare organisations should have zero tolerance to adhering to World Health Organization (WHO)s recommendations of five moments of hand hygiene and principles that enhance hand hygiene compliance culture.