Abstract
This study investigated the impact of a fresh scent on the rate of hand hygiene compliance (HHC) among novice healthcare providers. In all, 165 participants examined a standardized patient with one sample exposed to fresh scent (N=79) and the other exposed to the standard environment (N=86). Hand hygiene behaviours were tracked before patient contact using video surveillance. The standard environment group had an HHC rate of 51% whereas participants in the fresh scent group had a higher HHC rate of 80% (P<0.001). These data demonstrate that hand hygiene behaviour may be subconsciously influenced by cues in the environment.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 79-81 |
Number of pages | 3 |
Journal | Journal of Hospital Infection |
Volume | 85 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Sep 2013 |
Keywords
- Behavioural assessment
- Hand hygiene
- Patient safety
- Priming
- Scent
- Simulation
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Microbiology (medical)
- Infectious Diseases