Knowledge, attitude, and practice of hand hygiene among health workers in primary healthcare centers in Saudi Arabia: a systematic review

Abstract

The most common unfavorable outcome of hospital care are infections linked to healthcare, which significantly endanger patient safety and financially strain society. Increasing adherence to hand hygiene (HH) protocols must be a top concern for health authorities and all healthcare facilities. This systematic review aimed to study the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of HH among Saudi healthcare workers (HCWs). PubMed, SCOPUS, Web of Science, and Science Direct were systematically searched for relevant literature. Rayyan QRCI was employed throughout this comprehensive process. Twelve studies with 10,412 participants, and 6,806 (56.4%) females were included. All of the included studies were cross-sectional. Few research observed gaps or insufficient scores, but most of the included studies showed excellent knowledge, attitudes, and practice among HCWs. HH compliance was impacted by the availability of hand rubs, training initiatives, a demanding job, and dry skin following alcohol use. Unexpectedly, nurses complied with HH measures at a higher rate than physicians. HH was one of the first precautions recommended when the COVID-19 outbreak began growing and attracting attention from the general public and medical professionals. Thus, this would be the ideal time to use this unique opportunity to protect everyone from potentially infectious diseases and to better equip them for such medical catastrophes.