Factors associated with hospital-acquired infections among the intensive-care patients in a tertiary-care hospital in Sri Lanka and the nurses’ knowledge on precautionary measures

Abstract

Background: Patients in Intensive Care Units (ICUs) are at a higher risk of developing Hospital Acquired Infections (HAIs). Therefore, the health staff in ICUs should have an adequate knowledge about the precautions to be taken to minimize HAIs in ICUs. Objectives: The aim of this research was to assess the prevalence of HAIs and their associated factors among the patients treated in ICUs at the National Hospital of Sri Lanka (NHSL) and to access the knowledge among nursing officers on precautions taken to minimize HAIs. Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study had two components. For the first component, 110 patients being treated for more than 48 hours at ICUs at NHSL were recruited by consecutive sampling. A data was extracted from hospital records. Descriptive statistics and chi square test were used to analyze the data. The second component was conducted among 125 nursing officers working at ICUs at NHSL who were selected by convenience sampling. A self-administered questionnaire was used to assess their knowledge regarding precautions taken to minimize HAIs. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the knowledge. Results: The prevalence of Ventilator Associated Pneumonia (VAP), hospital acquired Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs) and cannula associated Blood Stream Infections (BSIs) were 29.3%, 10% and 5.5% respectively. The duration of stay (p=0.001), diabetes mellitus (p=0.008) and long-term use of antibiotics (p=0.001) were significantly associated with VAP while only long-term use of antibiotics was significantly associated with hospital acquired UTIs. Among the nursing officers 46.4% had scored above 75% for the knowledge questionnaire. Conclusions and recommendations: Our studies showed that HAIs are prevalent in the ICUs in NHSL and the health care staffs need to improve their knowledge and take interventions to minimize these infections.