ASSESSMENT OF KNOWLEDGE AND COMPLIANCE ON HAND HYGIENE AMONG HEALTH CARE TEAM IN TERTIARY CARE CENTRE.

Objective: To assess the knowledge and compliance of hand hygiene standards and guidelines among healthcare workers in a hospital. Study Design: Cross-sectional Study. Place and Duration of Study: This study was conducted in Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology/National Institute of Heart Diseases, form Oct to Dec 2018. Material and Methods: Total 102 health care workers were recruited through non-probability sampling technique. A validated research tool (WHO) was introduced and which consist of 18 structured questionnaires to assess knowledge and observation checklist to assess compliance on hand hygiene. Likert scale was used to answer the questionnaire. The collected data was entered and analyzed on SPSS (version 23). Results: Our results show that out of 102 participants, 43 (42.2%) were familiar with the hand hygiene guidelines, whereas for 77 (75.5%) of the participants, the guidelines were readily accessible. The developer of the guideline is well qualified and knowledgeable about hand hygiene (42.2%). 61.8% of health care workers were agreed that the aim of these guidelines is to provide specific recommendations for improving clinical practices and reducing the transmission of pathogenic microorganisms to patients. Total of 47 (46.1%) health care workers were agreed that the questionnaire was related to infection control policies and based on scientific research. 56.9% of the health care workers were not willing to change their hand hygiene regime, 69.6% were following traditional method and some of them contradict with these guidelines (66.7%). Conclusion: Emphasis on hand hygiene training programs in medical staff is an important issue that should be considered more seriously by the health policy makers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]