Evaluation of personal protective equipment for healthcare professionals to prevent transmission of covid-19

Healthcare workers (HCWs) face an elevated risk of contracting COVID-19, and implementing safety measures, including personal protective equipment (PPE), is critical in preventing infections. The study follows a cross-sectional design, focusing on four hospitals in Babylon province with epidemiological wards for COVID-19 patients, randomly selecting two through multistage sampling. A sample size of 425 HCWs was chosen via simple random sampling, with respondents providing insights through a questionnaire spanning demographic data, prevention and control methods assessment, evaluation of COVID-19 measures, and assessment of PPE requirements. When examining prevention and control methods by functional title and healthcare facility type, outcomes revealed that bacteriologists scored highest (4.275±0.329), followed by chemists (4.225±0.459), whereas pharmacist assistants scored lower (2.10±0.212). The assessment of medical laboratories yielded the highest score (4.059±0.400), contrasting with the emergency unit, which exhibited a lower score (3.883±0.452). Considering the overall evaluation of PPE within primary domains, the prevention and control methods domain earned the highest score (4.001±0.501), reflecting a good evaluation level. Conversely, the COVID-19 measures domain received a lower score (4.001±0.501), signifying a moderate evaluation level. Correlation analysis demonstrated highly significant positive correlations (P-value < 0.001) between prevention and control methods and COVID-19 measures (r=0.624), prevention and control methods and assessment of PPE conditions (r=0.476), and COVID-19 measures and assessment of PPE conditions (r=0.476). The study's findings indicated a significant association between the total PPE evaluation score and socio-demographic variables (P-value < 0.05), excluding the type of healthcare facility, which lacked substantial association with the total PPE evaluation score (P-value > 0.05). In conclusion, HCWs' overall assessment of PPE usage falls within an average range. Notably, a considerable percentage of HCWs reported inadequate training on PPE. The study underscores the necessity for comprehensive education and training across all HCWs, focusing on infection prevention, control strategies, and proper PPE utilization.