The Awareness of infection control and barriers among the healthcare workers in Sulaimaniyah city, Iraq
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21928/uhdjst.v9n2y2025.pp313-318Keywords:
Awareness, standard precaution, health care workers, barriers, cross-sectional surveyAbstract
Background: Healthcare workers (HCWs) are at risk of exposure to blood-borne pathogens such as human immunodeficiency virus and hepatitis B and C viruses through sharps injuries and contact with body fluids. Standard infection control practices are critical to preventing such exposures. Objectives: This study aimed to assess the awareness of infection control measures and perceived barriers among HCWs in Sulaymaniyah governorate, Iraq. Patients and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted between June 2021 and May 2022 among 557 HCWs working in different hospitals in Sulaymaniyah. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire with 44 items covering awareness, standard precautions, and barriers to infection control. Descriptive and inferential statistics were applied to analyze the data. Results: Overall, 79% of participants demonstrated adequate awareness of infection control practices, and 82% reported compliance with standard precautions. A significant association was observed between participation in infection control training and higher awareness levels (P < 0.05). Despite this, 52% of respondents acknowledged barriers to consistently applying standard precautions within their hospital units. Conclusions: Although awareness and compliance with infection control practices among HCWs in Sulaymaniyah were generally high, notable barriers remain. Regular training and institutional support are recommended to enhance adherence to standard precautions and strengthen infection prevention in healthcare facilities.
References
L. M. Asegu, A. Kitschen, M. M. Neuwirth, and D. Sauerland. “The economic burden of nosocomial infections for hospitals: Evidence from Germany.” BMC Infectious Diseases, vol. 24, p. 1294, 2024.
M. M. Patwary, M. Bardhan, A. S. Disha, M. P. Kabir, M. R. Hossain, M. A. Alam, et al. “Knowledge, attitudes and practices of healthcare workers regarding COVID-19 in Bangladesh: A nationwide study”. Frontiers in Public Health, vol. 10, p. 988063, 2022.
B. Allegranzi, E. Tartari and D. Pittet. “Infection prevention and control priorities 2021–2030: A global call for action.” Lancet Infectious Diseases, vol. 21, no. 6, pp. e144-e149, 2021.
J. S. Tabrizi, M. Letaief, H. M. Abdolahi, R. Rezapour, A. Alboksmaty and M. Farahbakhsh. “Safety of health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond: Piloting WHO framework in Iran”. Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition, vol. 44, p. 29, 2025.
S. Jing, Z. Dai, Y. Wu, X. Liu, L. Zhang, X. Liu, T. Ren, J. Fu, X. Chen, W. Wang, X. Gu, L. Ma, S. Zhang, Y. Yu, L. Li, Z. Han, X. Su and Y. Qiao. “Prevalence and influencing factors of occupational burnout among healthcare workers in the Chinese mainland during the late 2022 Omicron COVID-19 outbreak: A multicenter cross-sectional study”. BMC Public Health, vol. 25, p. 171, 2025.
M. S. Al-Beashi, R. A. Albalawi, I. H. M. Albalawi, N. A. Albalawi, W. A. Albalawi, F. M. A. Al-Enezi, M. A. M. Albalawi, R. M. A. Alanazi, A. N. Alosaimi, S. H. Alasmari, A. Alqethami, A. O. Alenazi, N. O. Alanazi, Y. M. S. Alsultan, E. A. A. Almulhim and A. S. Alanzan. “Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of healthcare workers about health care-associated infections in Saudi Arabia”. Journal of International Crisis and Risk Communication Research, vol. 7, Suppl. 10, pp. 467-483, 2024.
S. M. M. Hossain, S. Al-Dahir, R. Al Hilfi, Y. Majeed, A. Rahi, V. Sabaratnam, T. Al-Mulla, O. Hossain, A. Aldahir, R. Norton and F. Lami. “Evaluation of dedicated COVID-19 hospitals in the pandemic response in Iraq: Pandemic preparation within a recovering healthcare infrastructure”. BMJ Global Health, vol. 7, p. e008715, 2022.
M. A. Hasan, W. A. A. Ali and R. A. Mahmoud. “Assessment of nurses’ practice of standard precautions in hospitals of Babil Governorate, Iraq”. Journal of Health, Safety and Sustainable Development, vol. 12, pp. 83-89, 2023.
World Health Organization. “Implementation Manual to Prevent and Control the Spread of Carbapenem-Resistant Organisms at the National and Health Care Facility Level”. WHO, Geneva, 2019.
H. A. Hamid, M. M. Mustafa, M. Al-Rasheedi, B. Balkhi, N. Suliman, W. Alshaafee and S. A. Mohammed. “Assessment of hospital staff knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAPS) on activities related to prevention and control of hospital-acquired infections”. International Journal of Prevention and Treatment, vol. 8, pp. 1-7, 2019.
F. A. Shah, A. O. Alanazi, Y. K. Alrawili and Y. M. Alanazi. “Knowledge and attitudes towards infection control protocols among the students of Al-Jouf University in Saudi Arabia”. The Egyptian Journal of Hospital Medicine, vol. 71, pp. 3328-3331, 2018.
G. Abuduxike, S. A. Vaizoglu, O. Asut and S. Cali. “An assessment of the knowledge, attitude, and practice toward standard precautions among health workers from a hospital in northern Cyprus”. Safety and Health at Work, vol. 12, pp. 66-73, 2021.
M. Abed Alah, S. Abdeen, N. Selim, D. Hamdani, E. Radwan, N. Sharaf, H. Al-Katheeri and I. Bougmiza. “Knowledge and perceived effectiveness of infection prevention and control measures among health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic: A national survey”. Journal of Nursing Care Quality, vol. 37, no. 2, pp. E23-E30, 2022.
M. T. T. A. Alah, S. Abdeen, N. Selim, E. Tayar and I. Bougmiza. “Occupational prevention of COVID-19 among healthcare workers in primary health care settings in Qatar: Predictors of full compliance with PPE”. Journal of Patient Safety, vol. 18, pp. 745- 755, 2022.
A. K. Basher, M. A. A. J. Biswas, A. Rahman, M. Rahman, F. Chowdhury and M. Z. Hassan. “Occupational risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection among healthcare workers in Bangladesh: A multicenter hospital-based study and lessons for future epidemics”. Tropical Medicine and Health, vol. 52, p. 92, 2024.
B. Bayleyegn, A. Mehari, D. Damtie and M. Negash. “Knowledge, attitude and practice on hospital-acquired infection prevention and associated factors among healthcare workers at university of Gondar comprehensive specialized hospital, Northwest Ethiopia”. Infection and Drug Resistance, vol. 14, pp. 259-266, 2021.
T. Engda. “The contribution of medical educational system of the College of Medicine, and Health Sciences of the University of Gondar in Ethiopia on the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of graduate students of health sciences in relation to the prevention and control of nosocomial infections during the academic year of 2018”. BMC Medical Education, vol. 20. pp. 1-12, 2020.
M. Khan, K. Muhmood, H. Z. Mahmood, I. H. Khaliq and S. Zaman. “The health and economic burden of dust pollution in the textile industry of Faisalabad, Pakistan”. Journal of the Egyptian Public Health Association, vol. 99, p. 3, 2024.
B. A. Al Ra’awji, E. S. Almogbel, L. A. Alharbi, A. K. Alotaibi, F. A. Al-Qazlan and J. Saquib. “Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of healthcare workers regarding hand hygiene guidelines in Al- Qassim, Saudi Arabia: A multicenter study”. International Journal of Health Sciences, vol. 12, pp. 3-8, 2018.
M. Shoaib. “Universal precautions: Knowledge and practices of ICU nurses”. Journal of Medical Sciences, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 45- 50, 2025.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Niyan Hakim Ismael, Delan Jamal Qader, Gona Othman Faris, Awayi Ghazy Abdulkareem, Chnur Talib Mohamad
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
