A cross sectional study on infection control practices among mothers attending immunization clinic at a teaching hospital in Haryana

Abstract

Introduction: Mother’s hand washing practices, immunization awareness and early initiation of breast feeding are important steps to reduce neonatal and infant morbidity & mortality. Still these are not routinely practiced in our country. Therefore health education of mothers regarding infection control practices is a necessary intervention. Materials & Methods: A hospital based cross-sectional study was conducted at immunisation centre in our institution from August 2016 to October 2016. A pre-designed questionnaire on infection control practices was used for interviewing mothers of under five children attending immunisation clinic. Data was analyzed using SPSS software and results were interpreted into percentages. Results: 348 participants took part in the study. Mean age of the participants was 27.61±4.45 years. Awareness regarding infection control practices was fairly good among mothers except for hands should be washed with both soap and water. Mother’s educational status and infection control practices were related to each other. Conclusion: Lack of adequate information, maternal education level, socioeconomic factors, etc. influences the infection control practices which can be improved by proper health education of mothers and implementing programmes for hygiene practices.