Reducing the frequency of hand hygiene to maintain skin integrity among nurses in the growing care unit: A pilot study
Objectives: Consistent hand hygiene practice is required to reduce the prevalence of healthcare-associated infections. However, frequent hand hygiene compromises the skin barrier, causing hand eczema. Consequently, compliance with this practice can be reduced. This study aimed to determine the safet...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Fujita Medical Society
2025-08-01
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| Series: | Fujita Medical Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/fmj/11/3/11_2024-029/_pdf/-char/en |
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| _version_ | 1849247391771787264 |
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| author | Masami Tano Masushi Kohta Yoshiko Yano Junko Sugama |
| author_facet | Masami Tano Masushi Kohta Yoshiko Yano Junko Sugama |
| author_sort | Masami Tano |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Objectives: Consistent hand hygiene practice is required to reduce the prevalence of healthcare-associated infections. However, frequent hand hygiene compromises the skin barrier, causing hand eczema. Consequently, compliance with this practice can be reduced. This study aimed to determine the safety of reducing the frequency of hand hygiene by nurses, focusing on the de-implementation of the current excessive hand hygiene protocol.
Methods: A single-group, pretest–post-test pilot study was conducted in three nurses at a growing care unit (level 2 neonatal intensive care unit) in a Japanese university hospital. The developed intervention was performed four times and the current hand hygiene protocol was performed six times in each nurse. The number of microbial contaminations on the hands at each time point was the primary outcome. Impairment of the skin barrier (changes in the stratum corneum water content, transepidermal water loss, and skin pH) was the secondary outcome.
Results: The pre- and post-test residual bacterial contamination at each time point was not significantly different (p=0.99). The amount of change in skin physiology was also not significantly different between the pre- and post-tests.
Conclusions: Hand hygiene effects, such as a reduction in bacterial contamination and impairment of skin physiology, were significantly different between before and after the intervention of reducing the frequency of hand hygiene by nurses. To confirm this finding, we will focus on resistant bacteria and test this intervention in randomized, controlled trials. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-047dacd302d64372a5af7136274f6135 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2189-7247 2189-7255 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-08-01 |
| publisher | Fujita Medical Society |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Fujita Medical Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-047dacd302d64372a5af7136274f61352025-08-20T03:58:14ZengFujita Medical SocietyFujita Medical Journal2189-72472189-72552025-08-01113135141https://doi.org/10.20407/fmj.2024-029Reducing the frequency of hand hygiene to maintain skin integrity among nurses in the growing care unit: A pilot studyMasami Tano0Masushi Kohta1Yoshiko Yano2Junko Sugama3Department of Nursing, Fujita Health University HospitalResearch Center for Implementation Nursing Science Initiative, Fujita Health UniversityDepartment of Nursing, Fujita Health University HospitalResearch Center for Implementation Nursing Science Initiative, Fujita Health UniversityObjectives: Consistent hand hygiene practice is required to reduce the prevalence of healthcare-associated infections. However, frequent hand hygiene compromises the skin barrier, causing hand eczema. Consequently, compliance with this practice can be reduced. This study aimed to determine the safety of reducing the frequency of hand hygiene by nurses, focusing on the de-implementation of the current excessive hand hygiene protocol. Methods: A single-group, pretest–post-test pilot study was conducted in three nurses at a growing care unit (level 2 neonatal intensive care unit) in a Japanese university hospital. The developed intervention was performed four times and the current hand hygiene protocol was performed six times in each nurse. The number of microbial contaminations on the hands at each time point was the primary outcome. Impairment of the skin barrier (changes in the stratum corneum water content, transepidermal water loss, and skin pH) was the secondary outcome. Results: The pre- and post-test residual bacterial contamination at each time point was not significantly different (p=0.99). The amount of change in skin physiology was also not significantly different between the pre- and post-tests. Conclusions: Hand hygiene effects, such as a reduction in bacterial contamination and impairment of skin physiology, were significantly different between before and after the intervention of reducing the frequency of hand hygiene by nurses. To confirm this finding, we will focus on resistant bacteria and test this intervention in randomized, controlled trials.https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/fmj/11/3/11_2024-029/_pdf/-char/enhand hygieneinfection preventionskin physiology |
| spellingShingle | Masami Tano Masushi Kohta Yoshiko Yano Junko Sugama Reducing the frequency of hand hygiene to maintain skin integrity among nurses in the growing care unit: A pilot study Fujita Medical Journal hand hygiene infection prevention skin physiology |
| title | Reducing the frequency of hand hygiene to maintain skin integrity among nurses in the growing care unit: A pilot study |
| title_full | Reducing the frequency of hand hygiene to maintain skin integrity among nurses in the growing care unit: A pilot study |
| title_fullStr | Reducing the frequency of hand hygiene to maintain skin integrity among nurses in the growing care unit: A pilot study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Reducing the frequency of hand hygiene to maintain skin integrity among nurses in the growing care unit: A pilot study |
| title_short | Reducing the frequency of hand hygiene to maintain skin integrity among nurses in the growing care unit: A pilot study |
| title_sort | reducing the frequency of hand hygiene to maintain skin integrity among nurses in the growing care unit a pilot study |
| topic | hand hygiene infection prevention skin physiology |
| url | https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/fmj/11/3/11_2024-029/_pdf/-char/en |
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