Volume : 5, Issue : 4, April - 2016

A STUDY ON HAND HYGIENE PRACTICES AMONG HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS IN CRITICAL CARE UNITS

Digina Anna Jacob, Anchana. C. K

Abstract :

<p>&lt;p&gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;amp;nbsp;Hand washing, a process of decontaminating the hands, has become a major issue in health care settings due to the high incidence of Health care associated infections (HCAIs) also known as nosocomial infections. One of the biggest challenges facing infection prevention is health worker&amp;amp;rsquo;s compliance with best practices, especially proper hand hygiene1. Most healthcare-associated infections (HAI) are thought to be transmitted by the hands of Healthcare Providers (HCPs) through direct contact, mainly when the hands of Healthcare Providers transfer microorganisms between individuals or between individuals and the environmental reservoir2. It has long been known that hand hygiene among Healthcare Providers plays a central role in preventing the transmission of infectious agents. The impact of healthcare-associated infections include prolonged hospital stay, long term disability and increased resistance of micro-organisms to antimicrobials, massive additional financial burden on the patients and families and in some cases, death. The present study was an attempt to assess the hand hygiene practices among the health care professionals in critical care units of private hospital.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;</p>