Healthcare worker long-sleeved attire contamination: a prospective observational study

Area of Science:

• Infection Prevention and Control
• Microbiology
• Healthcare Epidemiology

Background:

• Healthcare worker attire can act as a reservoir for bacterial pathogens.
• Understanding contamination patterns of uniforms is crucial for preventing healthcare-associated infections.
• Long-sleeved attire is commonly worn by healthcare workers in direct patient care settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To estimate the prevalence of bacterial pathogen contamination on the long-sleeved attire of healthcare workers (HCWs).
• To identify potential predictors of sleeve contamination.
• To compare bacterial isolates from attire with a genomic surveillance database.

Main Methods:

• Prospective observational study conducted in a tertiary care hospital.
• Bacterial cultures performed on swabs from the sleeves of HCWs' long-sleeved attire.
• Analysis of potential predictors including attire type, material, and infection prevention practices.

Main Results:

• Over 81% of samples showed bacterial growth, with 20.7% yielding potential pathogens.
• Fleece attire and specific materials were significantly associated with higher contamination rates.
• No genetic relationship was found between sleeve isolates and patient clinical isolates in the surveillance database.

Conclusions:

• Bacterial contamination of HCW long sleeves is common, including the presence of potential pathogens.
• Attire type and material may influence bacterial transmissibility.
• Further investigation into the efficacy of "bare below the elbows" policies is warranted.