Barriers to infection prevention and control (IPC) practice among nurses at Bindura Provincial Hospital, Zimbabwe

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to determine barriers to infection prevention and control (IPC) practice among nurses at Bindura Provincial Hospital. A descriptive research design was used. Simple random sampling method was used to select 50 nurses. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. The study findings revealed that lack of knowledge was one of the barriers to IPC practice as only 14 (28%) of the nurses had excellent knowledge on infection control principles. Utilization of the infection control manual was poor as 21 (42%) nurses did not utilize the infection control manual, either because they did not know about it 12 (24%) or it was not available 9 (18%). Infection control workshops were poorly organized as 68% of the nurses did not attend any workshop on IPC which contributed to poor IPC practice. Other factors impeding infection control practice were lack of time and resources. Therefore, there is need by policy makers to provide in-service education on infection control principles on regular basis to all nurses to keep them updated with current knowledge as well as provision of adequate human and material resources.