title: Critical care clinicians' knowledge of evidence-based guidelines for preventing ventilator-associated pneumonia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Ventilator-associated pneumonia is the most common hospital-acquired infection among patients receiving mechanical ventilation in an intensive care unit. Different initiatives for the prevention of ventilator-associated pneumonia have been developed and recommended.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate knowledge of critical care providers (physicians, nurses, and respiratory therapists in the intensive care unit) about evidence-based guidelines for preventing ventilator-associated pneumonia.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ten physicians, 41 nurses, and 18 respiratory therapists working in the intensive care unit of a major tertiary care university hospital center completed an anonymous questionnaire on 9 nonpharmacological guidelines for prevention of ventilator-associated pneumonia.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean (SD) total scores of physicians, nurses, and respiratory therapists were 80.2% (11.4%), 78.1% (10.6%), and 80.5% (6%), respectively, with no significant differences between them. Furthermore, within each category of health care professionals, the scores of professionals with less than 5 years of intensive care experience did not differ significantly from the scores of professionals with more than 5 years of intensive care experience.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A health care delivery model that includes physicians, nurses, and respiratory therapists in the intensive care unit can result in an adequate level of knowledge on evidence-based nonpharmacological guidelines for the prevention of ventilator-associated pneumonia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, School of Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.
authors.forename: Mohamad F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: El-Khatib
authors.forename: Salah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zeineldine
authors.forename: Chakib
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ayoub
authors.forename: Ahmad
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Husari
authors.forename: Pierre K
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Bou-Khalil
mesh_terms: D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003422:Critical Care / Q000379:methods*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine / Q000379:methods*; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D053717:Pneumonia, Ventilator-Associated / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires