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HCW uniforms contaminated with potentially pathogenic bacteria
Wiener-Well Y. Am J Infect Control. 2011;39:555-559.
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Approximately 60% of health care worker uniforms sampled were colonized with potentially pathogenic bacteria that included drug-resistant organisms, according to new findings published in the American Journal of Infection Control.
Although 58% of participants said they changed their uniform daily and 77% described their attire’s hygiene level as “fair to excellent,” Yonit Wiener-Well, MD, of the infectious disease unit at Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem, and colleagues isolated potentially pathogenic bacteria from at least one site on 63% of participants’ uniforms.
“We believe the data suffice to formulate recommendations regarding health care worker (HCW) uniforms,” Wiener-Well told Infectious Disease News. “Professional organizations may issue guidelines about wearing a clean uniform daily, providing adequate laundering, improving hand hygiene practices and using plastic aprons when performing tasks that may involve splashing or contact with body fluids, which are likely to decrease the bacterial load on uniforms. Wearing short-sleeved coats or even having physicians discard their white coats could further reduce the cloth-borne transmission of pathogens.”
Swab samples were collected (n=238) from the abdominal zone, sleeve ends and pockets of registered nurse (n=75) and physician uniforms (n=60) at a 550-bed university-affiliated hospital. Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire.
Half of all samples tested positive for pathogenic organisms; 11% were multidrug-resistant. In addition, bacteria were isolated from 21 samples removed from nurses’ gowns and six samples removed from physicians’ gowns — including eight cultures that grew methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.
“Our work should preferably be repeated in larger studies, including physicians and nurses from all departments, which may be more representative,” Wiener-Well said. “Further studies can be designed to determine whether bacteria from HCW uniforms are transmitted to patients.” – by Ashley DeNyse
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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