Published study: Hand hygiene knowledge among nurses and nursing students

A study on level of knowledge and differences of hand hygiene between nursing student and nurses was recently published in the scientific journal Infection Prevention in Practice.

Annually, an estimated 3.8 million people in Europe are estimated to acquire healthcare-associated infections. Hand hygiene plays a significant role in preventing the transmission of resistant bacteria among patients and reducing the number of healthcare-associated infections. WHO:s guidelines presents strategies on how to improve hand hygiene within healthcare settings, and focuses on five improtant moments where healthcare workers should perform hand hygiene. However, knowledge about good hand hygiene and its importance is necessary for good hand hygiene to be practiced. Previous studies have demonstrated lack of knowledge about hand hygiene among nurses and nursing students.

In the study, level of knowledge about hand hygiene was compared between registred nurses and nursing students (1st and 3rd year students). A total of 201 participants responded to a web administered survey based on WHO:s "Hand Hygiene Knowledge Questionnaire for Health-Care Workers".

The results demonstrated lack of knowledge of hand hygiene among all groups. First-year nursing students had lower knowledge as compared to 3rd year students and registered nurses. In all groups, level of knowledge about bacteria causing healthcare-associated infections and minimizing the risk of contaminating the patients and the healthcare worker was lowest.

Read the full article Hand Hygiene knowledge among nurses and nursing students –A descriptive cross-sectional comparative survey using the WHO’s “Hand Hygiene Knowledge Questionnaire”. The article was written by Per-Ola Blomgren, Christine Leo Swenne, Birgitta Lytsy and Katarina Hjelm.