Exploring the factors associated with hand hygiene compliance of nurses during routine clinical practice

Background: Nurses and other health care providers (HCPs) continue to be noncompliant with the guidelines of proper hand hygiene practices. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore the factors associated with hand hygiene compliance among HCPs during routine clinical. Methods: An observational study was conducted at an oncology hospital to examine hand hygiene practices observed during 612 procedures that were performed by 67 HCPs. Results: Hand hygiene compliance was 41.7% (n = 255) before procedure and 72.1% (n = 441) after the procedure. The overall compliance was only 34.3% (n = 210). Compliance with the standards of hand hygiene was higher in high-risk procedures (odds ratio [OR] = 1.77; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.18-2.65) and when HCPs were exposed to blood (OR = 1.40; 95% CI, 1.07-1.73). Conclusion: The findings highlight the need to continue to push compliance with hand hygiene using innovative approaches that go beyond teaching and in-service training. © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved