Difference in compliance with Standard Precautions by nursing staff in Brazil versus Hong Kong

The Standard Precautions (SP) are measures to reduce the risk of transmission of bloodborne and other pathogens, and should be used by health professionals in the care of all patients regardless of their condition of infection. However, suboptimal compliance with SP has been consistently reported in the nursing literature. This study evaluated the differences of compliance with SP among nurses from Brazil and Hong Kong. This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2 countries-Hong Kong and Brazil-with nurses working in hospitals who responded to a self-administered questionnaire with demographic data and responses to a 20-item Compliance with Standard Precautions Scale. The compliance rate of 560 nurses was 69.4% for the Brazilian sample and 57.4% for the Hong Kong sample. The additional clinical experience of the Brazilian nurses versus those in Hong Kong may be related to differences in compliance with SP between nurses.