Effect of Nursing Guidelines Regarding Infection Control Measures against Communicable Diseases on Nurses' Performance in Intensive Care Units

Abstract

Communicable diseases are one of the most frequent adverse events associated with health care interventions in intensive care units. Infection control guidelines help to protect nurses who are more exposed to communicable diseases during clinical experience and improve their performance regarding infection control guidelines. Aim to evaluate the effect of infection control guidelines towards the communicable diseases in intensive care units on nurses' performance through assessing (a) Nurses’ level of knowledge regarding infection control guidelines towards the communicable diseases, (b) Nurses’ level of practice regarding infection control guidelines towards the communicable diseases, (c) Develop& implement infection control guidelines towards the communicable diseases, and (d) Evaluate effect of infection control guidelines towards the communicable diseases on nurses’ performance. Study design: a quasi experimental study; Subject: A purposive subject of forty five (45) registered nurses in intensive care units was recruited from the respiratory intensive care units and open heart surgery units at Ain Shams University Hospital. Tools: consisted of self administered questionnaire and nurses practice observational checklist applied in 3 phases (pre, immediate & post). The results of this study showed that 62.2% of nurses' had unsatisfactory level of knowledge and 57.8% of nurses had unsatisfactory level of practice pre implementation of nursing guidelines which improved significantly post implementing the nursing guidelines (X2= 22.8, & 114respectively at P<0.001) and there were improvement of the nurses' knowledge and practice retained significantly post 3 months period( X2= 22.8 , & 24.1 respectively at P<0.001). This study concluded that more than half of nurses had inadequate performance (knowledge & practice) regarding infection control guidelines toward the communicable diseases pre implementing the developed guidelines. Meanwhile, nursing guidelines had statistically significant positive effect on nurses’ performance (knowledge & practice) regarding infection guidelines toward the communicable diseases. Recommendation the importance of conducting periodic in-service training advanced care programs for nurses in intensive care units for improving their performance and quality of care provided.