Correct Use of Facemask Among Health Professionals in the Context of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19)

Educational intervention on biosafety with hospital hygiene and cleaning workers

to evaluate the effectiveness of an educational intervention with hospital cleaning and sanitizing workers in protecting against injuries caused by biological agents.

this was a prospective, quasi-experimental, before-and-after study with a single group, analyzing workers' behavior regarding adherence to standard precautions. Data was collected from 106 cleaning and sanitizing workers through a demographic and occupational questionnaire and a knowledge and behavioral survey on preventing diseases caused by biological agents. Participants' behavior related to biosafety was observed before and after the educational intervention. Descriptive and inferential statistical analysis.

77.4% of the workers are female and approximately 42% have worked for up to a year. As for the level of education, 39.6% had completed high school and 29.2% had incomplete primary education. The median score for adherence to standard precautions: pre-intervention 14 points and post-intervention 17 points. Among the observations before dressing, adherence to hand hygiene with soap and water rose from 41.7% to 75.0% after the intervention.

the educational intervention, based on theoretical-practical workshops and active methodologies, improved adherence to biosafety practices, as evidenced by both reported behavior and direct observation. The leadership and commitment of hospital managers are crucial for the continuity of education and biosafety practices, ensuring the safety of professionals and patients. Future studies should focus on the health of hospital cleaning and sanitizing workers, including educational programs and the relationship between their activities and patient safety against infections in healthcare services.

Adherence to Infection Prevention and Control Measures Among Health-Care Workers Serving in COVID-19 Treatment Centers in Punjab, Pakistan

OBJECTIVE

Infection prevention and control (IPC) measures are easily adoptable activities to prevent the spread of infection to patients as well as among health-care workers (HCWs).

METHODS

This cross-sectional study evaluated the adherence to IPC measures among HCWs working at coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) treatment centers in Punjab, Pakistan. HCWs were recruited by means of convenient sampling through Google Form^® using the World Health Organization risk assessment tool. All data were analyzed using SPSS 20.

RESULTS

A total of 414 HCWs completed the survey (response rate = 67.8%), and majority of them were males (56.3%). Most of the HCWs were nurses (39.6%) followed by medical doctors (27.3%). Approximately 53% reported insufficiency of personal protective equipment (PPE), 58.2% did not receive IPC training and 40.8% did not have functional IPC team at their health facilities. The majority of HCWs (90%) used disposable gloves and N95 facemasks while interacting with COVID-19 patients. Nearly 45% used protective face shields and gowns before providing care to their patients. Hand hygiene practices while touching, and performing any aseptic procedure was adopted by 70.5% and 74.1% of HCWs, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, the adherence to IPC measures among Pakistani HCWs working in COVID-19 treatment centers is good despite the limited availability of PPEs. Their practices can be optimized by establishing institutional IPC teams, periodic provision of IPC training, and necessary PPE.

Efficacy of personal protective equipment to prevent environmental infection of COVID-19 among healthcare workers: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

Healthcare workers (HCWs) employed personal protective equipment (PPE) during the COVID-19 pandemic, crucial to protecting themselves from infection. To highlight the efficacy of PPE in preventing environmental infection among HCWs, a systematic review was conducted in line with PRISMA guidance.

METHODS

A search of the PubMed and Web of Science databases was conducted from January 2019 to April 2021 using pre-defined search terms. Articles were screened by three researchers. The approved papers were read in full and included in this review if relevance was mutually agreed upon. Data were extracted by study design and types of PPEs.

RESULTS

47 of 108 identified studies met the inclusion criteria, with seven reviews and meta-analyses, seven cohort, nine case-control, fifteen cross-sectional studies, four before and after, four case series, and one modeling studies. Wearing PPE offered COVID-19 protection in HCWs but required adequate training. Wearing surgical masks provided improved protection over cloth masks, while the benefit of powered air-purifying respirators is less clear, as are individual gowns, gloves, and/or face shields.

CONCLUSIONS

Wearing PPE, especially facial masks, is necessary among HCWs, while training in proper use of PPE is also important to prevent COVID-19 infection.

Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Primary Care Physicians towards COVID-19 in Greece: A Cross-Sectional Study

The aim of this study was to investigate the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of primary care physicians and residents towards the COVID-19 pandemic in Greece. A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was conducted in Greece during March 2021. The population frame for the study was a list of currently practicing primary care physicians and residents who were registered within one of the main associations of general/family medicine in Greece. Hierarchical multiple logistic regression analysis was performed for practices at higher levels (vs. lower) in relation to knowledge, attitudes, and general characteristics of participants. Overall, 194 participants completed the survey (e-response rate: 38.4%). In total, 94% of participants were familiar with official recommendations regarding SARS-CoV-2, and 88.7% were vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2 or promptly intended to be. Physicians working in the private sector had a higher average practices score when compared to physicians working in the public sector (87.6 vs. 81.9, p < 0.05). Higher levels of attitudes predicted greater odds for higher levels of practices (odds ratio = 4.18, p < 0.05). Despite the relatively high COVID-19 vaccination rate of physicians, several participants were unvaccinated due to a then unscheduled first dose appointment. Attitudes were the only determinant for more proper practices towards the prevention of COVID-19.

Prevention Practice of COVID-19 Using Personal Protective Equipment and Hand Hygiene Among Healthcare Workers in Public Hospitals of South Wollo Zone, Ethiopia

Objective: The use of personal protective equipment and hand hygiene are often the most recommended line of defense against coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19). The purpose of this study is to determine the magnitude of compliance and associated factors of personal protective equipment (PPE) utilization and hand hygiene practice among healthcare workers in public hospitals of South Wollo Zone, Northeastern Ethiopia. Methods: A hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 489 healthcare workers in public hospitals of South Wollo Zone, Northeastern Ethiopia from June 15 to July 30, 2021. Proportional sample size allocation to each selected hospital followed by simple random sampling techniques were used to select the study participants using human resource records from each hospital. A pre-tested and structured self-administered questionnaire with WHO's standardized hand hygiene and PPE utilization observational checklist were used to collect data. Bivariate and multivariable analyses with 95% CI and p-value < 0.05 were employed to identify the associated factors of personal protective equipment utilization. Results: About 32 and 22.3% of healthcare workers were compliant with personal protective equipment utilization and hand hygiene practice, respectively. Feedback for safety (AOR = 2.05; 95% CI: 1.26-3.35), training on COVID-19 prevention (AOR = 3.43; 95% CI: 2.01-5.86), and perception to infection risk (AOR = 1.98; 95% CI: 1.18-3.33) were significant factors of good compliance with personal protective equipment utilization. Conclusion: The magnitude of good compliance with personal protective equipment utilization and hand hygiene was low. Interventions to promote personal protective equipment utilization and hand hygiene should focus on feedback for safety, training on COVID-19 prevention, and perception of infection risk.