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VOLUME 11 , ISSUE 1--4 ( January-December, 2025 ) > List of Articles

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Hand Hygiene Compliance among Healthcare Personnel in the Intensive Care Unit at a Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital in Uttarakhand: A Cross-sectional Study

Dinesh C Joshi, Ravinder S Saini, Shweta Samant, Samit

Keywords : Antibiotic resistance, Healthcare-associated infections, Intensive care unit, Patients

DOI: 10.5005/jp-journals-10045-00319

License: CC BY-NC 4.0

Published Online: 15-01-2025

Copyright Statement:  Copyright © 2025; The Author(s).


Abstract

Background: The practice of hand hygiene (HH) evolved over the years with evidential proof of its vast importance. Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), along with antibiotic resistance, are one of the leading risks for patient safety in intensive care units (ICUs). In most healthcare institutions, adherence to handwashing practices remains unacceptably low. Material and methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at the ICU of Himalayan Hospital, Dehradun. The sample size of 95 included doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, paramedical staff, and housekeeping staff working in the ICU. The data were collected by direct observation of the HH practices, and the HH compliance was calculated. Individual interviews were conducted to ascertain the common barriers to HH. Statistical analysis was performed in Microsoft Excel and Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 23.0. Pearson coefficient of correlation (r-value) and p-value were calculated. The level of statistical significance was set at 5% (p < 0.05). Results: It was observed that HH compliance of 142 (29.9%) was the highest for the third moment of HH and the lowest of 44 (9.3%) for the fifth moment of HH. The overall HH actions performed were 305 (64.2%). The compliance rate to HH was highest for doctors (69%), followed by nurses (65%) and physiotherapists (65%). Compliance was observed to be the lowest among housekeeping staff (50%). The overall compliance rate was 64.2%. Conclusion: HH compliance was observed to be low. The study concluded there is further scope for improving HH compliance by education and regular training.

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