Nurse anaesthetists’ knowledge and Perioperative Infection Control: A Study in the Upper East Region of Ghana

Abstract

Nurse anaesthetists play a crucial role in perioperative infection control, leading to patient safety, and this can be achieved through strict adherence to Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) principles. This study assessed the knowledge and self-reported clinical practices of nurse anaesthetists on IPC measures during the perioperative period, in the Upper East Region of Ghana. A cross-sectional study was conducted, involving the administration of a structured questionnaire to 33 nurse anaesthetists. The questionnaire assessed the socio-demographic profile, knowledge, and reported practices. Descriptive statistics and the chi-square test were applied to determine the association between knowledge levels and practice. The nurse anaesthetists had infection prevention knowledge score of 97.0%, and universal awareness (100.0%) was recorded for the essential role of hand hygiene. Conversely, 81.8% were recorded as having good overall practice, and no significant association was found between knowledge and practice (P=1.000). Poor hygiene practices recorded included: 48.5% always practiced routine hand hygiene, and 51.5% rarely changed the normal saline bag after 24 hours of puncturing it for drugs dilution. Furthermore, 81.8% never performed air quality test in their facility, and 69.7% claimed insufficient resources for effective IPC. Despite the high level of knowledge, there exist gaps between knowledge and practice, due to suboptimal adherence to basic IPC measures, and limit is important to note that whileited resources and support. Multimodal interventions targeting consistent practice compliance and improved healthcare system support are required to reduce the risk of infection during the perioperative period.