A pre-experimental study to assess the effectiveness of infectioncontrol standards on practice among health care personals working inlabour unit at selected hospital, krishna hospital, jind

Abstract

A pre-experimental one-group pre-test and post-test study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of structured infection control standards training on the practices of healthcare personnel working in the labour unit of Krishna Hospital, Jind, Haryana. Infection control is a critical component of safe maternal and neonatal healthcare, particularly in labour and delivery settings where exposure to blood, body fluids, invasive procedures, and contaminated instruments significantly increases the risk of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). Inadequate adherence to standard precautions may result in maternal puerperal sepsis, neonatal infections, occupational exposure among healthcare workers, and increased morbidity and mortality. The study adopted a quantitative research approach using a pre-experimental design. A total of 60 healthcare personnel, including staff nurses, auxiliary nurse midwives (ANMs), and labour room technicians, were selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected using a structured socio-demographic proforma and a 30-item observational checklist assessing infection control practices in areas such as hand hygiene, personal protective equipment (PPE), instrument decontamination, sterilization procedures, biomedical waste management, sharps disposal, and maintenance of aseptic techniques. The intervention consisted of a structured training program delivered over three consecutive days. The educational sessions included lectures, PowerPoint presentations, demonstrations, return demonstrations, practical exercises, and discussion-based learning focused on standard infection prevention protocols. The effectiveness of the intervention was measured by comparing pre-test and post-test practice scores using descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings revealed that before the intervention, the majority of participants (63.3%) demonstrated inadequate infection control practices with a mean pre-test score of 12.45 ± 3.12. Following the training intervention, a substantial improvement was observed, with 76.7% of participants achieving adequate practice levels and a mean post-test score of 24.88 ± 2.45. The paired t-test analysis showed a statistically highly significant improvement in practice scores (t = 18.64, p < 0.001), confirming the effectiveness of the structured educational intervention. The study also identified significant associations between pre-test practice scores and selected demographic variables such as educational qualification and years of clinical experience. Major improvements were observed in hand hygiene compliance, PPE utilization, instrument sterilization, biomedical waste segregation, and safe sharps disposal practices after the intervention. The study concluded that structured infection control training programs significantly improve the practical compliance of healthcare personnel working in labour units. Regular in-service education, continuous supervision, periodic audits, and adequate supply of infection prevention resources are essential for sustaining safe clinical practices and reducing healthcare-associated infections in maternal and neonatal care settings.