Hand Washing Practices of Hispanic Women in a Community Health Setting

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  • March 21, 2019
Creator
  • Lee, Cynthia
    • Affiliation: School of Nursing
Abstract
  • Hand washing is one of the most significant ways of preventing infections (CDC, 2011). This project evaluated current hand washing practices of a group of adult Hispanic women that attended a federally qualified community health center in eastern North Carolina. This project assessed participant's hand washing practices, knowledge, attitude, and beliefs using a modified tool. Following observation of their current hand washing practice, the Centers for Disease Control's (CDC) (2014) recommended hand washing technique was taught. Approximately four weeks after the intervention, the same tool was administered via telephone, to evaluate the impact of the intervention. Data were analyzed using measures of central tendency, frequency, correlations, and regression. Sixty (n=60) Hispanic women initially participated and thirty-three (n=33) completed the telephone follow-up. Ages ranged from 18 to 79 years old with an average of 33.3 years. Thirty-three percent of the women had only an elementary education. The average household size was 4.53 people, with an average of 2 children, and 20% per were pregnant. All participants reported a household income of less than $20,000. All had lived in the United States (US) ≥ 3 years; 93% were in the US > 5 years. All participants acknowledged the use of soap for hand washing. The average time of initial hand washing was 19.68 seconds. The 2nd hand washing following education and demonstration (n=39) increased from 19.46 to 29.95 seconds: a difference of 10.49 seconds. With multiple linear regression, a statistically significant relationship was found between self-reported number of hand washes per day pre- and post-intervention with pregnancy (p= 0.007 and .01, respectively) for participants that completed the project. Hispanic women in this project had good knowledge of hand washing. Despite their low-income status and minimal formal education, they were in compliance with CDC (2014) guidelines for hand washing. Since a reported increase in hand washes of pregnant women was significant, this could assist in the prevention of infections especially within the context of maternal-infant care. This project reinforced CDC recommendations for proper hand washing to decrease disease transmission. Reinforcing their knowledge and skill encourages the continuance of proper hand hygiene.
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  • In Copyright
Advisor
  • Davison, Jean
  • Menezes, Prema
  • Barksdale, Debra
Degree
  • Doctor of Nursing Practice
Degree granting institution
  • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Graduate School
Graduation year
  • 2016
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