Nosocomial Infections - Critical Appraisal

Hospital acquired infections (HAI) are, quite simply,infections that are acquired whilst one is in hospital. In medical literature they are called Nosocomial infections. They are defined as not being present upon admission to the hospital. This topic is important to nurses as it is often the nurses who spread the infection, when caring for patients with many different diseases and infections. Therefore nurses should be aware of new developments and research on the topic of reducing hospital acquired infections. This report will critically appraise three articles based on Nosocomial infections and the different aspects of how they may be acquired. The first article explores the link between health care workers wearing a wristwatch and hospital acquired infections. The second article researched the new approach to improving hand hygiene rates of health care workers in a hospital in Sydney. The third article investigates nurses’ uniforms, and the role that may play in nosocomial infections. This report will refer to scholarly articles regarding critical appraisals, and will also touch on evidence based practice.

‘Wristwatch use and hospital acquired infection’
Research question
The research question in this journal article is, does wearing a wristwatch influence the rate of Staphylococcus Aureus and other bacteria present on the hands and wrists of health care workers?
Research method
The research method used was a quantitative cohort study, divided into two groups.
Sample group
The sample group in the first study were 100 health care workers; 52 wristwatch wearers, and 48 non-wristwatch wearers. In the second study there were 155 participants; 85 wristwatch wearing health care workers, and 70 non-wristwatch wearers.
Steps taken
In the first study, in order to answer the research question, the researchers swabbed the hands and wrists of the health care workers, sampling for contamination of bacteria. Those who wear wristwatches