A Survey of Hand Washing Behavior and Awareness among Health Care Workers in Health Care Facilities in Kubwa District of Bwari Area Council, F.C.T. Abuja, Nigeria

Background
Hand washing is the process of decontaminating the hands, a cheap and effective method of limiting the spread of nosocomial infections. Good hand hygiene involves cleansing hands in between patients or between examining an infected site and a clean body site on the same patient. Proper hand washing practice involves following the WHO accepted guidelines for hand washing. Hand washing is an effective and inexpensive way to prevent diarrhea and acute respiratory infections. This study aimed to assess the compliance of health care workers in public and private hospital in F.C.T Abuja.

Methodology
The study was carried out amongst health workers in public and private hospitals in Kubwa district of Bwari area council, F.C.T Abuja. Kubwa General Hospital and Daughters of Charity Health Care Services were eligible for the study both. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select 224 respondents. Self- administered questionnaires, as well as an observational check list were used to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of hand washing. A scoring system was devised to grade the questionnaires (KAP score). Further analysis was done using Microsoft Excel.

Results
Majority of the respondents (140, which is 68.30%) had good knowledge of hand washing using KAP scoring. 44 (21.5%) respondents had very good knowledge of nosocomial infections. Thirty-two of these respondents with very good knowledge were Doctors. About half of the respondents interviewed had excellent hand washing practice, while 76 (37.07%) had good practice. For the limiting factors to hand washing, lack of material (soap, water, towels) was the most frequently indicated.

Conclusion
There was good awareness of hand washing principles, nosocomial infections and good attitude towards hand washing. However, this did not correlate well with practice which was below average.

Keywords: Hand washing; Nosocomial infections; Health workers; Health Care Facilities; Kubwa District, Bwari Area Council; Abuja; Nigeria.