Knowledge and practice of universal precautions among student nurses in school of nursing, Jos Nigeria

Abstract

Student nurses are exposed to hazards as they trained in the clinical setting. Little is known about how knowledgeable students are about universal precautions and how this is practiced by students in the clinical area. This study aimed to determine knowledge and practice of universal precautions by students of school of nursing, Jos. A convenience sampling was employed to draw 76 students who voluntarily filled a self administered questionnaire. Findings revealed that the average age of respondents was 23 years and they had attended and average of 4 clinical postings. Further, 63.7% reported that needle recap was not advised, 93.4% supported hand washing before after procedure, and 90.7% agreed that gloves should be worn when coming in contact with blood and blood products. Findings also show that 48.7% did not recap needle, 52.6% reported the use of gloves, and 73.7% practiced hand washing before and after procedure while 48.6% reported not being able to practice universal precautions due to inadequate supply of barrier equipments. It was concluded that most participants were aware of universal precautions and practice of universal precautions was reasonable. However, a significant proportion were worried that inadequate supply of barrier equipments stops them from practicing universal precautions.