title: An evaluation of the hand and nasal flora of Turkish nursing students after clinical practice.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare the hand and nasal flora of nursing students before and after the clinical practice.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Hospitals are places where infective agents abound. Healthcare workers, relatives of patients and students practising in the hospital medium are often exposed to these infective agents. Although the role of the hand and nasal flora of healthcare workers in the development of nosocomial infections has been emphasised by earlier studies, there are a limited number of studies which investigate the hand and nasal flora of nursing students.
  
  
  METHODS
  Descriptive.
  
  
  METHODS
  This descriptive study involved 66 volunteer nursing students. Two samples of flora from both hands and nose of each student were obtained. The inoculated samples were then evaluated through routine bacteriological study methods. Chi-square and percentage calculations were used in comparisons.
  
  
  RESULTS
  None of the students had methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus or methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococcus colonisation in the hand samples before clinical practice, 6.1% of the students had methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and 4.5% had methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococcus colonisation after the practice. Although the differences between the rates of contamination with pathogen micro-organisms in the hand and nasal flora of the student nurses before and after clinical practice were not significant, the rate of colonisation after clinical practice was higher.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this study, the rate of colonisation after clinical practice was higher. These findings indicate that students might have been contaminated with bacteria during clinical practice.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results of this study have practical importance in clinical practice. The role of the hand and nasal flora of nursing students in the development of nosocomial infections is significant. For this reason, some precautions, such as using gloves and handwashing with special solutions when needed, should be taken to prevent nosocomial infections and protect students against associated risks.
authors.affiliation: Ataturk University, Erzurum School of Health, Erzurum, Turkey.
authors.forename: Reva Balci
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Akpinar
authors.forename: Ayda
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Celebioglu
authors.forename: Hakan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Uslu
authors.forename: Muhammet Hamidullah
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Uyanik
mesh_terms: D003428:Cross Infection / Q000382:microbiology; D006225:Hand / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D009296:Nasal Cavity / Q000382:microbiology*; D013210:Staphylococcus / Q000302:isolation & purification; D013338:Students, Nursing; D014421:Turkey