ABSTRACT
Infection prevention and control is a rational, evidence-based strategy that guards against preventable infections to patients, staff, and healthcare providers (WHO, 2019). With the introduction of life-threatening viruses like COVID-19, the Ebola virus, Lassa fever, etc., efficient infection prevention and control methods among healthcare personnel and professionals as well as the general public have lately become even more crucial. There are many published reports on the knowledge and practice of IPC standards and guidelines in high-income countries but in comparison for low and middle-income countries like Nigeria, there is much less surveillance data on IPC practices (Ekuma et al., 2022) which forms the basis for this study. The aim of this study is to critically access the knowledge of healthcare professionals (doctors and nurses) on infection prevention and control policies and guidelines and the implementation of recommended core components of IPC practice at different levels of healthcare (secondary and tertiary facilities) in Edo state, Nigeria. The specific objectives are: (1) Determine the knowledge of healthcare professionals (doctors and nurses) on Infection prevention and control (IPC) practices; (2) Investigate the level of compliance with infection prevention and control practices among healthcare practitioners at secondary and tertiary health levels in Edo State, Nigeria.
A comprehensive questionnaire, identified and modified to fit the objectives of this study, was used to collect data. A cross-sectional survey involving 147 doctors and nurses, selected by convenience sampling, at Edo Specialist Hospital and University of Benin Teaching hospital was carried out. Data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) for windows version 21.0. Basic descriptive analysis was performed and results obtained were expressed using frequency and percentages.
More than half of the participants (doctors and nurses) claimed to have good knowledge of infection prevention and control policy and guidelines in their institution and have attended training on infection prevention and control. In assessment of compliance to standard precautions, over 50% across all cadres of study participants claimed to be in compliance with IPC practices. In summary, this study found that IPC knowledge and practices generally good among healthcare professionals in the study area. Resources, education and training on IPC policies and guidelines should be provided consistently in a sustainable manner at all levels of healthcare facilities. In addition, consistent surveillance of implementation and compliance is also vital to improve healthcare service delivery, safety of health workers and patients, to reduce global disease burden and the impact of antimicrobial resistance.
