Knowledge, Attitude and Practices Regarding Standard and Isolation Precautions Among Vietnamese Health Care Workers: A Multicenter Cross-Sectional Survey

Healthcare Associated Infections (HAIs) has now become a global medical challenge. At any time, more than 1.4 million people worldwide acquire infectious complications in hospitals [1]. Rosenthal [2] reported the rates of device-associated infections ranging from 8.2 to 16.1 per 1,000 device-exposed-days in developing countriesat least 3 to 5 times higher than international standards. In a recent study at some Vietnamese hospitals, a crude overall HAI rate was of 7.8% [3]. HAIs not only constitute an importance cause of morbidity, mortality, prolonged stay and economic burden but also the appearance of increased antibiotic uses and multidrug-resistant microorganisms [4,5]. Abundant literatures are consistent with the notion of HAIs could be prevented by standard and isolation precautions [4,6]. However, many prior studies suggested that Health Care Workers (HCWs) did not strictly follow these practices [4,7,8]. Inadequate knowledge of most HCWs and their senior managers about recommended infection control precautions could explain why infection control activities are often carried out with poor results in health care settings. In Vietnam, most studies in infection control field focused on HAI magnitude. To date, there has been no published report on knowledge of attitude toward and practices of infection control and prevention among Vietnamese HCWs. The objectives of this cross-sectional survey were to determine the knowledge, attitude and practices regarding standard and isolation precautions among HCWs of Vietnamese hospitals. Methods