Assessment on the attitude of health personnel towards hygiene practice: a case study

Abstract

The study aimed to establish the attitudes of professional health personnel on hygiene practice toward patients at University of Maiduguri Medical Center. Simple descriptive research design method was used to elicit information due to the nature of the questions that query personal values and attitudes. Self-administered questionnaire was adopted to ensure equal representation of patients from the total population (63677) registered from January 2014 to February 2023. Simple random sampling technique was used to arrive at the required sample size of 200 respondents. However, n=133 (73.08 %,) students, n=49 (26.92 %,) staffs, out of the 200 administered questionnaire were retrieved. The study outcome indicated 70% of the respondents agreed that health personnel working at the school medical center had very positive attitudes towards hygiene practice and to their patients. However, certain percentage respondents disagree and alleged that the health personnel do have ill-attitude towards hygiene practice and to their patients. Nonetheless, the % of the respondent’s views that were not in support of the attitude of health personnels, which reveals that the health care personnel do have negative attitude towards hygiene practice and to their patients should not be neglected. In health care setting there is serious need to look into even 1% gap hygiene and attitudes of health personnels issues for it’s a profession that deals with life and death. The attitudes toward hygiene practice by health care personnel would have a negative or positive influence on the organizational performance. The study recommend often supervision, use of surveillance technologies, The management should organize quarterly or time-time awareness sessions to patients (staff and students) within the campus on work ethics, hygiene practice and sanitation. The management of the medical center should adhere to a zero tolerance to hygiene practice especially by the health personnel, patients satisfaction and look into possibilities of ending conflict of interest, third party players practice by some of the health personnels.