Compliance of Jordanian registered nurses with infection control guidelines: A national population-based study

Background This national study aims to evaluate compliance of Jordanian staff nurses with infection control guidelines. Methods Cross-sectional, descriptive design was used. Proportional-multistage, probability sampling was used to obtain a sample of 10% of all staff nurses working in Jordanian hospitals. Standardized self-reported instruments were used to evaluate the compliance. Results The total sample consisted of 22 hospitals, of which 8 were governmental, 7 military, 5 private, and 2 university-affiliated hospitals. Of the total 889 participating nurses, 52.6% were females, 81.9% holding a bachelor degree. The mean age was 29.0 years (standard deviation [SD] = 5.9) with a mean of experience of 6.9 years (SD = 5.8). According to the scale categories, 65.0% of participants demonstrated "high compliance," 32.3% "weak compliance," and 2.7% "unsafe compliance." Nurses who received infection control training in the hospital demonstrated higher compliance (mean = 120.2, SD = 13.6); than those who never received such training (mean = 115.8, SD = 15.2), P <.001. Nurses who work in university affiliated hospitals demonstrated higher compliance than other types of hospital (P <.001). Conclusion This study provides information about infection control practices in various health care sectors in Jordan. Results from this study expected to guide efforts to develop educational tools, programs, and curricula to improve infection control practices in Jordan.