Oral Abstract presented at APIC 2016 Charlotte, NC A Survey of Healthcare Worker Knowledge, Perceptions and Actions

2. Irritant Contact Dermatitis
A Survey of Healthcare Worker
Knowledge, Perceptions and Actions
Maryanne McGuckin, Dr. ScEd, MT (ASCP)
President, McGuckin Methods International
John Govednik, M.S.
Co-Principal Investigator, McGuckin Methods International
Funded by an unrestricted grant from Georgia-Pacific LLC. The authors have
nothing to disclose.

3. Barrier or Missing Link?
• Irritant Contact Dermatitis (ICD) symptoms
(dryness, itching, redness, swelling, chapped
skin) are often cited as barriers to compliance.
• The reported incidence of ICD in healthcare
workers (HCWs) attributed to hygiene has
increased steadily from 1996 to 2012.
• 4.5 times more likely to suffer from dermatitis in
2012 than in 1996
Br J Dermatol. 2015 Jul;173(1):165-71. doi: 10.1111/bjd.13719. Epub 2015 Jun 2.

4. Barriers Supported by
Research and Guidelines
• Interventions/ Education
• Hand Hygiene (HH) Compliance
Measurements
• Patient Empowerment
• Public Reporting

5. Irritant Contact Dermatitis
(ICD) Barrier 2016
• Literature supports causes of ICD
• ICD effects patient care practices
• Lack of measures published on HCW
knowledge, decisions, and support for
addressing this barrier to compliance
• Practices not supported by guidelines

6. Objectives
• Identify sources for HCW knowledge of ICD on
hands
• Identify HH behavior changes when HCWs
experience ICD symptoms on hands
• Assess role of facility policy in HCW decisions
to monitor and treat ICD on hands

7. Methods
• Society for Healthcare Epidemiology in
America Research Network internet survey
• November/December 2015
• Four components:
• Knowledge
• Procedures to monitor and treat ICD
• Organizational HH policies addressing ICD
• Demographics of respondents
• Responses analyzed as percentage of total
responses

8. Results
• 62 surveys completed (28% response rate)
• 40 USA, 3 India, 2 Canada, 1 all others each

9. Results – HCW Knowledge
Knowledge Source Percent of Respondents
Scholarly Journals 63%
Colleagues 42%
Medical Websites 34%
HH Product Vendor Websites 26%

10. Results – HCW Action
Action Steps Percent of Respondents
Consult Employee Health 58%
Use lotion/moisturizing
products
53%
Use approved alternate
soap/sanitizer
40%
Use personal, non-approved
HH products
39%
• 15 % of respondents said ICD symptoms impaired
their ability to perform patient services

11. • When you start to experience symptoms of irritated skin on your
hands, what change in behavior do you make in regards to the
following hand hygiene practices?
Use of… Much less
often
Somewhat
less often
The same Somewhat
more often
Much more
often
Soap and water 16% 15% 34% 13% 0%
Sanitizer 2% 19% 39% 13% 5%
Alternative soap
product
0% 6% 19% 8% 6%
Alternative sanitizer
product
2% 3% 23% 5% 6%
Hand drying with
paper towel
5% 10% 34% 11% 3%
Hand drying with air
dryer
8% 3% 16% 6% 2%
Moisturizing
lotions
2% 0% 6% 21% 60%

12. Results – Policy Support
• 47% consulted their facility’s ICD policy
• 8% said they don’t have, or are unaware of, any
policy to address ICD
• 13% were unsure how symptoms of ICD were
monitored, 29% said no procedure exists to
monitor symptoms
• 65% used self-reporting method to assess
symptoms and make treatment decisions

13. Conclusion
• How we address ICD maybe one of the
missing links to improving HH compliance
• No common guideline or action plan across
facilities
• Lotions and moisturizers are clear choice
• Must be seen as part of facility’s HH procedure
and not individual choice
• Empower HCWs with proper knowledge, best
actions, and a supportive environment!

14. Thank you
• Questions and discussion
• Dr. Maryanne McGuckin
• maryanne@mcguckinmethods.com