title: Hand hygiene among laboratory workers.
abstract: We performed a study to measure the compliance of laboratory personnel with different components of hand hygiene. The level of compliance at the end of duty was 100%; however, 36.7% of subjects wore a ring, 46.9% wore a watch, and 6.1% wore a bracelet. Pathogenic microorganisms were exclusively found on hands of laboratory personnel who wore jewelry. After interventions, the level of compliance with the no-jewelry policy among laboratory personnel showed sustained improvement. Efforts to improve hand hygiene should be directed not only at healthcare workers but also at laboratory personnel.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Disease, Faculty of Medicine, Erciyes University, Kayseri, Turkey.
authors.forename: Emine
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Alp
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Haverkate
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Voss
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D006225:Hand / Q000382:microbiology*; D006235:Hand Disinfection; D006801:Humans; D006920:Hygiene; D017053:Infection Control; D008297:Male; D017056:Medical Laboratory Personnel