Infection control practices among nursing staff in ICUs

Introduction: Although infections are spread in hospitals mainly by hands and the accidents with needles are not rare, the staff shows a low compliance with the infection control guidelines. Objective: To evaluate the compliance of nursing personnel with the infection control guidelines in Intensive Care Units (ICUs) and explore possible relationships with background factors. Method: A descriptive, exploratory design was adopted by using a self-completed questionnaire. (N=127, 12 ICUs from three hospitals). Results: Nurses reported a high level of knowledge regarding the infection control (M=1.86, SD=0.66, R=0-3), but most of them (70.9%) had never participated in continuous education programs or seminars and they wanted to learn more (98.4%). Males reported a lower level of Knowledge (1.29 – 1,95 P<0,05) and they had a more negative attitude (1,24 – 2,12 P