Hygienic hand washing among nursing students in Turkey

The purpose of this study was to determine the application status of hand-washing information given within the context of infection control measures in practice areas among nursing students. This descriptive study was conducted with 430 students. A questionnaire was filled out by the students. In the statistical analysis, frequency, percentage, and ?2 values were measured for all the questions in the hand-washing questionnaire. We determined that students wash their hands before and after each clinical procedure at a rate of 80.2%. Most of the students (71.9%) reported that they wash their hands for 1 minute or longer. The students' answers showed that the nursing education program, including hand-washing applications within the context of infection control measures, is updated but that the students neither practice what they have learned nor give adequate attention to the subject. © 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

Critical-care nurses' pain experiences and the prognostic factors

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the emergence of pain in critical-care nurses and the prognostic risk factors. Design: This study is a cross-sectional descriptive research. Setting and Subjects: This study was conducted with the participation of 111 critical-care nurses in Zonguldak province, Turkey. Interventions: The data were collected using a survey form and the Cornell Musculoskeletal Discomfort Questionnaire between August and November 2015. The data were evaluated using frequency, average, Pearson correlation analysis, ?2, logistic regression, and odds ratio tests. Results: The critical-care nurses were found to experience pain mostly in their lower backs (88.3%), upper backs (77.5%), right (76.6%) and left (78.4%) feet, necks (73.9%), and most infrequently in the right (28.8%) and left (28.8%) lower arms. Changing bed linens while the patient remained in bed and lifting, pulling, or pushing heavy materials caused those nurses who felt despondent and tired to feel significant pain in the shoulder, neck, upper arm, wrist, and knee (P <.05). Conclusions: These results were significant for placing emphasis on maintaining body mechanics while caring for patients, providing appropriate environmental conditions, and ensuring ergonomics to preserve the health of critical-care nurses who work in hospitals. Copyright © 2018 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved