Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA.
School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD.
Am J Infect Control. 2019 May;47(5):492-497. doi: 10.1016/j.ajic.2018.11.015. Epub 2019 Jan 5.
Understanding the perceptions and beliefs of health care workers (HCWs) regarding glove use and associated hand hygiene (HH) may be informative and ultimately improve practice. Research in this area is limited. This study examined the practices and beliefs of HCWs surrounding the use of nonsterile gloves and HH before gloving.
The study was conducted at 3 large academic US hospitals using a parallel convergent mixed-method design. To estimate compliance rates, the gloving and HH practices of HCWs were observed at entry to patient rooms for 6 months. Interviews were conducted with 25 providers, nurses, and nursing assistants to investigate their beliefs and perceptions of these practices.
Observed HH compliance rates before gloving were 42%, yet in the interviews most HCWs reported 100% compliance. Observed compliance with gloving before entering contact precaution rooms was 78%, although all HCWs reported always gloving for standard and contact precautions. Most HCWs described using gloves more often than necessary. HCWs generally use gloves for their own safety and sanitize hands before gloving for patient safety. Numerous barriers to compliance with HH before gloving were discussed, including beliefs that gloves provide enough protection.
HH and glove use are highly intertwined in clinical practice and should be considered jointly in infection prevention improvement efforts.
了解医护人员（HCWs）对手套使用和相关手部卫生（HH）的看法和信念可能具有启发性，并最终改善实践。该领域的研究有限。本研究考察了 HCWs 在戴手套前使用非无菌手套和 HH 的实践和信念。
该研究在美国 3 家大型学术医院使用平行汇聚混合方法设计进行。为了估计依从率，对 HCWs 在进入患者房间的 6 个月内进行了戴手套和 HH 实践的观察。对 25 名提供者、护士和护理助理进行了访谈，以调查他们对这些实践的看法和看法。
戴手套前 HH 的观察依从率为 42%，但在访谈中，大多数 HCWs 报告 100%的依从率。在进入接触预防措施室之前，戴手套的观察依从率为 78%，尽管所有 HCWs 均报告对标准和接触预防措施始终戴手套。大多数 HCWs 表示戴手套的次数超过了需要的次数。HCWs 通常出于自身安全而戴手套，并在为患者安全戴手套前对手进行清洁。讨论了许多与戴手套前 HH 依从性相关的障碍，包括认为手套提供足够保护的信念。
HH 和手套使用在临床实践中高度交织，应在感染预防改进工作中共同考虑。
