title: Preventing healthcare-associated infections: Residents and attending physicians need better training in advanced isolation precautions.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Compliance with advanced isolation precautions (IPs) is crucial to reduce healthcare-associated infections. Our aim was to evaluate physician's knowledge and attitudes related to IPs.
  
  
  METHODS
  An online questionnaire was sent to our hospital's physicians (attending physicians and residents).
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 111 physicians completed the questionnaire: 60 (54%) attending physicians and 51 (46%) residents. Overall, respondents had a poor knowledge of the three types of IPs, especially droplet precautions (13 correct answers, 11.7%) and airborne IP (17 correct answers, 16.3%). We observed a statistically significant difference between attending physicians and residents for the type of IP to prescribe to a patient presenting with multidrug-resistant urinary infection: 44 residents (86%) gave the correct answer vs 42 attending physicians (70%), P=0.04. Physicians (both residents and attending physicians) who were already familiar with the dedicated webpage available on the hospital's intranet (n=40) obtained a score of 4.75/10 (±2.0) compared with 4.03/10 (±1.7) for those who had never used that tool (n=71). The difference was statistically significant (P=0.04). The average score for both residents and attending physicians was 4.3/10 (±1.9, range: 1-10). Attending physicians' and residents' scores were 4/10 (±1.8) and 4.5/10 (±1.9), respectively, but the difference was not statistically significant (P=0.14).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Physicians' knowledge of IPs was insufficient. Improvement in medical training is needed. The use of a dedicated webpage on hospitals' intranet could help physicians acquire better knowledge on that matter.
authors.affiliation: Service de maladies infectieuses et tropicales, CHU de Saint-Étienne, 42055 Saint-Étienne cedex 02, France.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Moriceau
authors.affiliation: Service de maladies infectieuses et tropicales, CHU de Saint-Étienne, 42055 Saint-Étienne cedex 02, France; GIMAP (Groupe immunité des muqueuses et agents pathogènes) EA 3064, université de Lyon, 42023 Saint-Étienne, France. Electronic address: amandine.gagneux-brunon@chu-st-etienne.fr.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gagneux-Brunon
authors.affiliation: Service de maladies infectieuses et tropicales, CHU de Saint-Étienne, 42055 Saint-Étienne cedex 02, France; Unité d'hygiène inter-hospitalière, service de maladies infectieuses et tropicales, CHU de Saint-Étienne, 42055 Saint-Étienne cedex 2, France.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gagnaire
authors.affiliation: GIMAP (Groupe immunité des muqueuses et agents pathogènes) EA 3064, université de Lyon, 42023 Saint-Étienne, France; Service de néphrologie, dialyse, transplantation, CHU de Saint-Étienne, 42055 Saint-Étienne cedex 2, France.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mariat
authors.affiliation: Service de maladies infectieuses et tropicales, CHU de Saint-Étienne, 42055 Saint-Étienne cedex 02, France; GIMAP (Groupe immunité des muqueuses et agents pathogènes) EA 3064, université de Lyon, 42023 Saint-Étienne, France.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lucht
authors.affiliation: Service de maladies infectieuses et tropicales, CHU de Saint-Étienne, 42055 Saint-Étienne cedex 02, France; Unité d'hygiène inter-hospitalière, service de maladies infectieuses et tropicales, CHU de Saint-Étienne, 42055 Saint-Étienne cedex 2, France.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Berthelot
authors.affiliation: Service de maladies infectieuses et tropicales, CHU de Saint-Étienne, 42055 Saint-Étienne cedex 02, France; GIMAP (Groupe immunité des muqueuses et agents pathogènes) EA 3064, université de Lyon, 42023 Saint-Étienne, France.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Botelho-Nevers
mesh_terms: D000336:Aerosols; D003195:Computer Communication Networks; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000635:transmission; D004502:Education, Medical, Continuing; D004521:Educational Measurement; D005602:France; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D057226:Information Seeking Behavior; D007396:Internship and Residency; D008505:Medical Staff, Hospital / Q000193:education*; D010356:Patient Isolation / Q000379:methods*; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016635:Universal Precautions
chemical_list: D000336:Aerosols
keywords: Healthcare-associated infections; Infections associées aux soins; Isolation precautions; Précautions complémentaires d’hygiène