BackgroundThe objective of this study was to determine the contamination rate of the healthcare workers' (HCWs') mobile phones and hands in operating room and ICU. Microorganisms from HCWs' hands could be transferred to the surfaces of the mobile phones during their use.Methods200 HCWs were screened; samples from the hands of 200 participants and 200 mobile phones were cultured.ResultsIn total, 94.5% of phones demonstrated evidence of bacterial contamination with different types of bacteria. The gram negative strains were isolated from mobile phones of 31.3% and the ceftazidime resistant strains from the hands were 39.5%. S. aureus strains isolated from mobile phones of 52% and those strains isolated from hands of 37.7% were methicillin resistant. Distributions of the isolated microorganisms from mobile phones were similar to hands isolates. Some mobile phones were contaminated with nosocomial important pathogens.ConclusionThese results showed that HCWs' hands and their mobile phones were contaminated with various types of microorganisms. Mobile phones used by HCWs in daily practice may be a source of nosocomial infections in hospitals.

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Mobile communication devices help accelerate in-hospital flow of medical information, information sharing and querying, and contribute to communications in the event of emergencies through their application and access to wireless media technology. Healthcare-associated infections remain a leading and high-cost problem of global health systems despite improvements in modern therapies. The objective of this article was to review different studies on the relationship between mobile phones (MPs) and bacterial crosscontamination and report common findings. Thirty-nine studies published between 2005 and 2013 were reviewed. Of these, 19 (48.7%) identified coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS), and 26 (66.7%) identified Staphylococcus aureus; frequency of growth varied. The use of MPs by healthcare workers increases the risk of repetitive cyclic contamination between the hands and face (e.g., nose, ears, and lips), and differences in personal hygiene and behaviors can further contribute to the risks. MPs are rarely cleaned after handling. They may transmit microorganisms, including multiple resistant strains, after contact with patients, and can be a source of bacterial cross-contamination. To prevent bacterial contamination of MPs, hand-washing guidelines must be followed and technical standards for prevention strategies should be developed.Key words: healthcare workers; mobile phones; bacteria; nosocomial infection; contamination. J Infect Dev Ctries IntroductionThe rapid progress of modern technology has contributed not only to medical fields, but also to the development of technologies for individual use. This technology includes personal computers, pagers, mobile hand-held devices (MHDs) (wireless tablets such as iPad, droids, etc.) and mobile phones (MPs), in which improvements have been made at a staggering speed over the past 20 years [1][2][3]. MPs and MHDs help accelerate in-hospital flow of medical information and information sharing and querying, and contribute to communications in the event of emergencies through their application and access to wireless media technology [1,2]. As technology in this area has evolved, MHDs that provide laboratory and imaging results, patient data, and photographic images are being used by physicians during bedside rounds to engage clinicians, residents, and students. Healthcare workers (HCWs) access pharmaceutical knowledge and literature by MPs and MHDs, which facilitates learning and clinical performance [4,5]. It is possible,

The implementation the International Nosocomial Infection Control Consortium multidimensional approach for ventilator-associated pneumonia was associated with a significant reduction in the ventilator-associated pneumonia rate in the adult intensive care units setting of developing countries.