| Wash Your Hands, Please |
| How easy is it for patients to ask their healthcare providers to wash their hands? A study of New York obstetric patients indicate that even assertive patients do not always speak up; 50 patients were asked to complete surveys in a convenience sample of women mostly in their 20s in an inner city hospital. Surveys included questions on demographics, assertiveness, and experience in witnessing hand hygiene. Overall, 60% of patients reported they would ask their provider to wash his hands, although only 25% of patients who self-subscribed as non-assertive would ask. A strong factor was the relationship between the patient and practitioner; of the patients that did not know their practitioner's name, 38% would ask them to wash, compared to 79% that did know their practitioner's name. |
