Nursing Staff's Knowledge and Performance regarding Infection Prevention and Control Measures at the Hemodialysis Unit

Abstract

Hemodialysis (HD) patients, as well as dialysis staff, are vulnerable to healthcare-associated infections due tofrequent and prolonged exposures to multiple possible contaminants in the HD environment. Consequently, infection controlis specifically recommended in HD units to reduce the risk of healthcare associated infections (HAIs) and crosscontamination of the environment. The current study aimed to assess the nursing staff's knowledge and performanceregarding infection prevention and control measures at the hemodialysis unit. Method: A cross-sectional study design wasutilized to accomplish this study. A Accidental sample of 40 nurses who were involved in providing direct patient care wereincluded in the study at the hemodialysis unit in Dekernes General Hospital. Three tools were used to assess thedemographic and occupational data, knowledge, and performance of nursing staff. Results: The study revealed that 70% ofthe studied nursing staff had a poor level of knowledge and 67.5% of them had an incompetent performance level regardinginfection prevention and control measures at the hemodialysis unit. Conclusion. Since the nursing staff had a poor level ofknowledge and an incompetent performance level regarding infection prevention and control measures, it is recommended todevelop and implement an effective infection control training program for nursing staff to address the gaps in knowledge andperformance.