[A hand hygiene education program. Comparison between handwashing and the use of alcohol solutions].

OBJECTIVE

To analyze the results of a hand hygiene education program in nursing staff, and to compare the efficacy of handwashing with and without the application of alcohol solutions.

METHOD: A hand hygiene educational program was applied in nursing professionals through theoretical and practical workshops. The workshops were evaluated through a student satisfaction survey. During the training period, a prospective randomized study was performed and the students were divided into 3 groups. The results of routine handwashing, handwashing after the training period, and the application of alcohol solutions were compared. A hand culture was taken from all participants before and after each intervention and the reduction in the number of colony-forming units (CFU) was evaluated. In a fourth group, artificial contamination was performed and the effectiveness of routine handwashing was analyzed by detection of residual contamination with ultraviolet light.

RESULTS

Seventy-three workshops were imparted, with 792 students (462 nurses, 26 midwives and 304 nursing auxiliaries). Overall evaluation of the course was 8.3/10 and the trainers' score was 9/10. The mean reduction in CFU was 100.7 in the routine handwashing group, 100.3 in the group performing handwashing according to the protocol, and 118.2 in the alcohol solution group (p = 0.026).

CONCLUSIONS

The hand hygiene training program was well regarded by the nursing staff. The reduction in bacterial count was greater when alcohol solutions were used than in other forms of handwashing.