The Nurses Hand-Washing Behaviour and Knowledge - Assignment Example

Hand Washing (Insert Name) (Institution Affiliation) Task 1: Undergraduate Learning Profile I appreciate the Undergraduate Learning Profile which has given me a better perception of my strengths and weakness in learning. The feedback I received related to my learning approaches and personality factors. I am more of a deep approach learner as I have evidently applied the knowledge I gained at my work places. I usually do not leave pending tasks unsolved. I have solved numerous tasks simply by relating past experiences of knowledge gained in university, looking for similar patterns and the major underlying reason for problems. In addition I checked the evidence by examining the arguments and relating it to conclusions. I scored full marks on this approach, however on strategic approach I scored half. This is because I am not comfortable studying in environments which are noisy and I always gear my work to the perceived preferences of teachers. Thanks to the strategic approach I have managed my time and efforts effectively. From personality perspective I am an extrovert, I am a team player, interactive, willing to learn and also share my experience with others. I possess high levels of enthusiasm, innovation and creativity. Though I realised, without constant stimulation from my colleagues I become bored very quickly in routine tasks. I am flexible and can adapt to various work environments. I have strong communication and interpersonal skills, I ask to be guided whenever I do not understand something and take own initiatives. This learning profile has given me an insight to my personality and learning approaches in life. I do not consider myself perfect; therefore I am convinced that I should make a couple of changes to be of good use to society. I have three strategies I will put in place to make my learning better. Which is, I will adopt some introvert tendencies of gaining energy from within so that i concentrate on tasks for longer periods of time rather than wait to be stimulated? I also realised that i am sensitive to certain aspects; therefore I will change this by being more relaxed while facing pressure during exams. Task 2: Student Interview Assessment I found Mark, a 2nd Year MBA student at [Insert the name of his Institution]. He was very enchanting. I asked him a couple of questions like: Tell me something I do not know about you? What are your future career prospects? Why are you interested in this university? Do you ever encounter a major problem while studying? Where do you see yourself in future? How can you change the society you live in? Do you have any role models or people you can look upon to? What is your most memorable experience at the university? I appreciated Mark for devoting his ample time to do the interview. By being absorbed into extra-curricular activities just like me, he gave me a few handy tips for being successful at university and one of them was to balancing studying and the extra-curricular activities by managing my time well and constantly keeping a good working relationship with lecturers. This has changed my experience at the university. From my interaction with him, I realized that it’s possible to engage yourself in extra-curricular activities and still perform well in your academics. I leaned that Mark is among the three top students in his class. I also admire is eloquence and confidence. Task 3: Academic writing Thesis Statement Hand washing with soap and water should be mandatory in rural and urban schools Supporting main points Health Impact: Today typhoid, diarrheal disease and respiratory tract infections are the two biggest killers of children in the developing world. Hand-washing is an effective and inexpensive way of preventing diseases Educational impact: Due to reduced sickness in schools, absenteeism is reduced; it improves retention due to regular attendance therefore better performance and completion of school in primary level in the long run. Economic impact: Washing hands in schools can impact economically as the money which was planned to treat the sickness associated can be channelled to Agriculture, Infrastructure, food and many other things. Paragraph: Hand-washing with soap is the “vaccine” that prevents infections in rural and urban schools. Human faecal materials are the main source of diarrheal pathogens. They are the source of shigellosis, typhoid, cholera, all other common endemic gastro-enteric infections and some respiratory infections such as influenza and pneumonia. A single gram of human faeces can contain 10 million viruses and one million bacteria (Kelcikova, Skodova & Straka, 2011). Removing excreta and cleaning hands with soap after contact with faecal material –from using the toilet or cleaning a child – prevents the transmission of the bacteria, viruses and protozoa that cause diarrheal diseases (Erkan, Findiki & Tokuc, 2011). Other measures (food handling, water purification, and fly control) have an impact on these diseases as well, but sanitation and hand-washing provide the necessary protection against faecal contact. Hand-washing with soap stops the transmission of disease agents and so can significantly reduce diarrhoea and respiratory infections, and may impact skin and eye infections. Research shows that children living in households exposed to hand-washing promotion and soap had half the diarrheal rates of children living in control neighbourhoods (Kelcikova, Skodova & Straka, 2011). Because hand-washing can prevent the transmission of a variety of pathogens, it may be more effective than any single vaccine (Erkan, Findiki & Tokuc, 2011). Promoted on a wide enough scale, hand-washing with soap can be thought of as a “do-it-yourself” vaccine. Ingraining the habit of hand-washing could save more lives than any single vaccine or medical intervention (Rajcevic, Djuric, Grjicic, Dugandzija & Cosic, 2012). Examples of the consequences of dirty hands are massive cholera outbreaks in Kenyan schools. Bibliography Erkan, T., Findiki, U.Y., & Tokuc, B., 2011. Hand-washing Behaviour and Nurses’ Knowledge after a Training Programme, International Journal of Nursing Practice, 17: 464- 469. Kelcikova, S., Skodova, Z., & Straka, S., 2011. Effectiveness of Hand Hygiene Education in a Basic Nursing School Curricula. Public Health Nursing, 29(2): 152-159. Rajcevic, S., Djuric, P., Grjicic, M., Dugandzija, T., & Cosic, G., 2012. Knowledge, Habits and Attitudes of Health Care Workers about Hand Hygiene, HealthMED, 6(4): 1418- 1423. Task 4 Article selection and evaluation Erkan, T., Findiki, U.Y., & Tokuc, B., 2011. Hand-washing Behaviour and Nurses’ Knowledge after a Training Programme, International Journal of Nursing Practice, 17: 464- 469. Article Summary The aim of this study was to evaluate the nurses’ hand-washing behaviour and knowledge before and after training programme. This study involved 200 nurses who each received 40 min of training on hand washing. One month after training the behaviour of the nurses was assessed. Following a training session and feedback to increase hand-washing compliance, the rate increased from 7.8% to 54.5% among the doctors, nurses and assistants in an intensive care unit. Hospitalized patients carry microorganisms that are known to cause infections. The hands of nurses can become contaminated during ‘clean’ activities, such as moving patients, or measuring the pulse, blood pressure, or oral temperature. Microorganisms remain on the hands of nurses for different durations either with or without gloves therefore hand washing is the best means to remove temporary flora and to reduce the number of permanent flora. After the training session was completed, the nurses were given a booklet on hand washing prepared by the researchers to enhance the effectiveness of their training and badges to increase awareness about the importance of hand washing. The booklet was prepared with reference to the published literature and also included information on the history of hand washing, hand flora, the purposes of hand washing, contamination and cross contamination, microorganisms, the relationship between hand washing and hospital infections, types of hand washing according to their purpose, effective conditions for hand washing, recommendations of the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention on hand-washing techniques, and cleaning products and their characteristics. The average age of the nurses was 30 years, and they had an average duration of work experience of 8 years; 96% of the nurses were female and 61% were married; 72% of them had received associate, undergraduate or graduate degrees; 85% worked in medical clinics; 83% were nurses. There was a significant increase in the frequency of hand washing by the nurses and the time spent on hand washing after the training programme. There was a statistically significant increase in knowledge about hand washing and quality of hand washing among the nurses after the training. Article Structure The article was quantitative in a PDF format; the article was introduced with an abstract and throughout had key words of: hand washing, hand-washing quality, and training of nurses. The article shows how many people were involved and participated in the study as well as the location of the thesis. The methods of collecting data were also visible. During the study the materials used in conducting the research were presented to the participants. To analyse the data, descriptive statistics, a t-test and a Mc Nemar chi-squared test were used. There were 6 headings i.e HAND-WASHING BEHAVIOUR AND NURSES’ KNOWLEDGE AFTER A TRAINING PROGRAMME, INTRODUCTION, METHODS, RESULTS, DISCUSSION, REFERENCES, 6 sub headings Design and sample, Procedure, Study aims, Ethical considerations, Data analysis, Conclusion and recommendation, three forms Personal information form, Pre-test survey form, Post-test survey form and three tables for the research. As the article described the research study was conducted between 1 January 2009 and 31 March 2009 at the Trakya University Training and Research Hospital, Turkey, The sample consisted of 200 nurses who agreed to participate. The article contained the conventional information normally provided in such a study. For example there are sections related to the background and significance of the research, a review of the literature and the methodology as well as the data collection and analysis techniques used. The conclusions and recommendations were developed towards the end ant thereafter references were listed down. Evaluation of authority, currency and accuracy Erkan, T., Findiki, U.Y., & Tokuc, B., 2011. Hand-washing Behaviour and Nurses’ Knowledge after a Training Programme, International Journal of Nursing Practice, 17: 464- 469. Authority, currency and accuracy of an article are important indications of its credibility. The article’s authors are all highly competent and consummate individuals. This adds credibility to the article’s scientific work that has been presented. The language used in the article is not only professional but also acceptable in the academia world. Information provided has been backed by research findings from other researchers in this field. Also, the article was published in 2011, indicating its relevance to the modern science. Tulay Erkan is a scholar from Trakya University training and research hospital which was established in 1974 in Thrace Turkey. Findik Ummu Yildiz is a graduate of Istanbul University Florence Nightingale School of Nursing and has been practicing since 1986; she acquired her PhD in 1999 from Istanbul University, Institute of Health Sciences. She has headed various tasks since then. Her major study areas are Emergency Surgical Nursing, Hospital Infections, asepsis and Wound Care. On the other hand Burcu Tokuc is a Doctor of Philosophy scholar in Public Health and has written numerous articles such as: “Migraine Prevalence and Some Related Factors in Turkey,” available at: , and “Factors associated with childhood constipation” also available at: . Therefore, with highly recognized scholars in health and nursing fields, this article demonstrates high levels of authority, currency and accuracy. 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