An Analysis of Infection Control Measures Among Public and Private Healthcare Professionals in the Hospitals of South Punjab, Pakistan

Abstract

Nosocomial infections are defined as those developing 48 hours after admission, within 3 days of discharge, or 30 days of operation. They are mainly caused by bacteria, viruses, and fungi and until now they have been known to cause complications like sepsis and organ failure. A hospital-based cross-sectional analytical study was conducted among the healthcare workers for two districts comprising Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan of south Punjab, Pakistan. Awareness: Analyzing the responses given by the patients, 90 % of patients practiced hand hygiene appropriately while 64.3% of the patients took sufficient preventive measures. Infection Distribution: 87.1% reported nosocomial infections in hospitals, making the most recurrent UTI at 55.7%, followed by pulmonary infections at 8.6%, and bloodstream infections at 2.9%. Prevention: Preventative measures cited included: Workshops and maintenance of cleanliness. High-Risk Groups: Patients with complications (71.4%) had more vulnerability than HCWs (2.9%) and visitors (5.7%). Sterilization: 97.1% said that asepsis was significant, pointing out that incorrect sterilization was leading to infection. Infrastructure: HEPA filters which are extremely important while controlling communicable airborne diseases were installed in the study sample hospitals and only 31.4% of hospitals had HEPA filters installed at the time of the study. Dissemination Factors: 29 of the respondents realized that soiled bed sheets were an important vector for embodying and disseminating infection, mentioning a value of 95%. A massive knowledge deficit of both nosocomial infections, preventive steps, and support structures can be deduced from the study. Maintaining hand hygiene and sterilization, and increasing the installation of infection-control amenities including the HEPA filters are critical.