Alcohol-Based Handrub Utilization Practice for COVID-19 Prevention Among Pharmacy Professionals in Ethiopian Public Hospitals: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Purpose Rubbing the hands with alcohol-based handrub (ABHR) is globally recommended as the preferred approach to prevent healthcare-associated infections in most routine encounters with patients, except in cases handwashing with soap and water is advised. Inappropriate utilization of ABHR could have detrimental effects, most importantly during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, which include exposure of healthcare professionals to healthcare-associated infections and the development of resistant microorganisms. In a hospital setting, the utilization of ABHR among frontline healthcare workers including pharmacy professionals is low. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the current practice of hand rubbing among pharmacy professionals in public hospitals of Addis Ababa during the pandemic of COVID-19. Methods The study was a cross-sectional study using a self-reported questionnaire conducted among pharmacy professionals in public hospitals found in Addis Ababa from 10th May to 9th June, 2020 to recognize ABHR utilization rate. Data were collected on a sample of 384 pharmacy professional by a self-administered questionnaire. Data analysis was done using software for the statistical package for social science version 25.0. To identify the significant predictors of ABHR utilization practice bivariable and multivariable logistic regressions were carried out. Crude odds ratio and adjusted odds ratio with 95% confidence interval were calculated to determine the predictors. Results Out of 384 participants, three hundred and four participants were included in the final analyses after the exclusion of incomplete responses. Female participants represented 41.4% of the study participants. More than half (58.9%) of the pharmacy professionals had sufficient knowledge on ABHR utilization for COVID-19 prevention. Similarly, 56.6% of pharmacy professionals had positive attitude towards ABHR for COVID-19 prevention. But only 35.9% of the study participants had good ABHR utilization practice. Conclusion Despite the modest level of knowledge and attitude towards ABHR, pharmacy professionals’ utilization practice of ABHR for COVID-19 prevention was found to be suboptimal. Provision of ABHR solutions through hospitals and increasing the awareness of pharmacy professionals on ABHR needs to be encouraged.

COVID-19 preventive practices during intrapartum care- adherence and barriers in Ethiopia; a multicenter cross- sectional study

“…The result of this study, however, was higher when contrasted to studies done somewhere else in Ethiopia including two studies in Addis Ababa-35.9% [ 37 ] and 33.3% [ 38 ], and northwest Ethiopia-38.73% [ 34 ]. The possible justification might be the time gap, data collection technique, the tool used to measure the outcome variable, and the study setting.…”

Healthcare workers’ compliance with COVID-19 preventive measures, and associated factors, in Ethiopia: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…We determined the association between good knowledge and compliance with COVID-19 preventive measures using seven studies 39 40 54 55 58 59 61. It was found that HCWs with good knowledge of COVID-19 preventative measures were 2.4 times more likely to comply with COVID-19 preventive measures than HCWs with poor knowledge (POR: 2.36, 95% CI: 1.92 to 2.89) (figure 8).…”

“…A total of 7933 study participants were included in the current meta-analysis to estimate the pooled proportion of good compliance with COVID-19 preventive measures among HCWs. In the present meta-analysis, six studies were from Amhara, 41 53 58 59 62 65 seven studies from the Oromiya region, 38 53–55 60 61 64 four from Addis Ababa, 40 56 63 66 one from Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ Region (SNNPR), 39 two from Tigray region, 57 67 and one study conducted in Oromiya, Amhara, Addis Ababa, Tigray, and SNNPR. 42 However, none of the studies reported from Benishangul-Gumuz, Gambella and Dire Dawa regions ( table 1 ).…”

Untitled

“…The data collection tool was prepared based on the WHO recommendation and reviewing the literature [2,20,37,40] and modified to the local context and study objective. Afterward, a group of researchers assessed the questionnaire to evaluate its suitability.…”

“…Less strong data showcase that COVID-19 is also associated with neonatal loss, low birth weight, and preterm birth [17,33]. In Ethiopia, many studies have been conducted on healthcare provider's preventive practice towards COVID-19 [15,[34][35][36][37][38]. However, most of these studies were collected through a webbased study and there was a dearth of studies in which the data were collected through direct observation.…”