Assessment of Nurses' Practice in Comparison between Urban and Rural at Primary Health Care Centers Toward Infection Control Application

Abstract

Background: Healthcare providers, particularly nurses, are at risk of infection as part of the COVID-19 pandemic since they assist in the disease's containment. By recognizing the risk factors for infection and implementing suitable measures to reduce these risks, all reasonable efforts should be taken to control the spread of infection to them.

Objective(s): To assess nurses' practice in comparison between urban and rural at primary health care centers toward infection control application.

Methodology: A descriptive design, which uses the evaluation approach, had been conducted at rural and urban primary health care centers in Dhi Qar Governorate in order to measure the infection control application on nurse’s job performance. This study is started from (4 December 2022 to 24 April 2023).

Results: The findings reveal that the most of participants of nurses in both groups (urban & rural) have a good levels of nurses’ practice regarding infection control application at primary health care centers in the study sample (n=50; 35(70%), 41(82%) respectively, with arithmetic mean and standard deviation (2.45 ± 0. 267), (2.51 ± 0. 239) respectively.

Conclusion: Concerning the nurses' practices about infection control application, the results found adequate nurses' practices toward hand washing, tactics of anti-contamination during safe injection, while inadequate nurses' practice toward (PPE).

Recommendations: Strict observation of nurses’ performance/ utilization of infection control standard precautions and correction of poor practices by the infection control team are required. Providing training programs for newly joined nurses about infection control standard precautions and at regular intervals. Recommendation of nurses about (PPE) to decrease the risk of infection.