Assessment of knowledge and practices of hand hygiene among health workers in Rwanda

Abstract

BackgroundHand hygiene (HH) has proven to be the leading measure to prevent the cross-transmission of microorganisms. However, HH compliance among healthcare workers has been very low in Rwanda, with average compliance of<40%. There was no nationwide data related to HH compliance in Rwanda except for a few studies in different institutions on quality improvement. The research aimed to assess the hand hygiene knowledge level and compliance among the health care providers at Kirehe District Hospital. MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted among 29 healthcare workers (20 nurses/midwives and 9 doctors) working at the maternity unit at Kirehe District Hospital in Rwanda. Knowledge was assessed using the WHO HH questionnaire. ResultsThe overall knowledge score was 77.5%, and 44% of participants had moderate HH knowledge. Gloves were 98% available and accessible to health professionals. The hand rub was available in 52%, mostly used by doctors who carried it in their pockets (40.6). The availability of soap and water was 45% and 29%, respectively. A binomial test was done to see if there was any factor that was associated with HH knowledge; it was found that there was no statistically significant association between knowledge and demographics. ConclusionThe findings of this study showed that most healthcare workers had good knowledge of HH. Healthcare workers were observed putting on gloves without washing their hands between patients during rounds. The HH infrastructure was poorly located, with limited supplies, and there were no hand-washing facilities in some rooms.