Barriers to Effective Personal Protective Equipment use in Public Health Workers

Exposure to infections continues to be a significant concern for nursing practice and for other health care professionals. Personal protective equipment (PPE) minimizes occupational exposure; however, their use is subject to variability. This quality improvement project addressed the impact of an educational intervention on attitudes and barriers to proper use of PPE for public health workers at the study site. The health belief model and the literature review provided theoretical support for the project and evidence of current trends in PPE use. There were 44 employees who completed the preintervention survey and 22 who completed the postintervention survey to gauge attitudes and beliefs. A non-parametric test was applied to identify the presence of statistically significant findings (p \u3c .05) between pre- and post-intervention responses. Survey responses were coded (1 for correct/positive answers, 0 for incorrect/negative answers), resulting in a continuous data score ranging from a low of 0 to a high of 11; scores closer to 11 represented knowledge acquisition/positive attitudes toward the use of PPE and COVID-19 vaccination. The pre- and post-intervention mean scores were 9.1591 and 9.6364, respectively. The survey analysis did not reach statistical significance for questions specific to mask use; however, statistically significant change was noted in the number of employees interested in receiving the COVID-19 vaccine (p = .045). COVID-19 vaccination is crucial to preventing the spread of COVID-19 infection. Enhancing health worker interest in receipt of the COVID-19 vaccine demonstrates positive social change and validates the comprehension of personal, professional, and ethical responsibility to protect the health of oneself and others