Correlation of Hand Hygiene Knowledge and Hand Decontamination Practices of Medical Students

Objectives: To determine the knowledge of MBBS students of a public sector medical university regarding hand hygiene and to assess the practical implication of their knowledge regarding hand hygiene during the clinical postings. Study Design and Setting: A cross sectional study was conducted in Sindh Medical College, Jinnah Sindh Medical University (SMC-JSMU) Karachi, from July to November 2018. Methodology: A total of 316 M.B.B.S students from first year to final year were included in the study. Students were equally divided into preclinical and clinical groups. Hence, the knowledge of preclinical and clinical students were compared in the present study. Age range of participants was 18 to 24 years and both male and female participants were involved. Data was analyzed by SPSS 22.0. P value < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: Approximately 249 (78.8%) students agreed that hands of health care workers are a source of nosocomial infections. Nearly 293 (92.7%) students admitted that hand decontamination and gloving is necessary before bedside procedures. Only 61 (38.6%) students performed it routinely. Chief restricting factor in performance of hand hygiene was inadequate supply of hand hygiene resources as reported by 122 (77.2%) students. Conclusions: Majority of medical students in both preclinical and clinical groups were well aware of HH practices and its significant role in infection control. However, only a limited number of students routinely performed HH. The difference between knowledge and practice of students was mainly due to the inadequate facilities of hand washing in public sector hospitals