Knowledge and Practice of Health Care Workers on Infection Control Measures

Healthcare workers are potentially exposed to blood and body fluids in the course of their work and therefore they are at risk of infection with blood-borne pathogens. Evidence exists that compliance with Universal Precautions reduces the risk of infections and protects healthcare practitioners. A descriptive study on knowledge and practice of health care workers regarding infection control measures was conducted in selected wards of Christian Medical College, Vellore. 106 nursing personnel (61 staff nurses and 45 student nurses) were selected by convenient sampling technique and the knowledge was assessed by structured knowledge assessment questionnaire and practice was assessed by an observation checklist. It was found that majority of the nursing staff (67.2%) and nursing students (71.1%) had adequate knowledge and regarding practice, hand washing steps were not carried out correctly by 14% doctors, 27.3% of nursing staff and 25.5% of the nursing students followed by 33.3% of the doctors, 21.9 % of the staff and 24.5% of the students has not used hand rub to disinfect the hands. There was a significant association (p = 0.023) between the level of knowledge and the year of experience at (p ≤ 0.05) level.