Knowledge of cross-contamination control among clinical fixed prosthodontic students at the faculty of dentistry, Omer-Almukhtar university, Libya

Abstract

Background: Students in the faculty of dentistry are at high risk from microbial cross-contamination and accidental sharp injuries while they are treating dental patients, & therefore must be protected. Cross-contamination control is an essential aspect of the dental practice & the dental team have no doubt about its importance. The sharp instruments such as local anesthetic needles should be used very carefully to avoid occupational injuries which can lead to infection transmission. The dental students must receive vaccination particularly HBV vaccine to reduce the hazard of sharp injuries.  The aim of the current survey was to evaluate awareness, and compliance of cross-contamination control guidelines among 3^rd and 4^th year dental students at the dental college, Omer-Almukhtar university, Libya. Materials and Methods: 76 members of 3^th & 4 ^th year  clinical dental students have participated in this survey. Design of a questionnaire was made with 69 closed-ended questions regarding the patient screening, personal hygiene, hand hygiene, personal protective barrier techniques, immunization ( vaccination status), needle stick injury, clinical waste regulations, & infection control practices & awareness. The questionnaire was distributed among the clinical dental students. Coding of all the distributed questionnaires was done for the confidentiality of responses. SSPS program was used to analyze the gathered data. Results: The designed questionnaire has been given to the dental students (n=76) at the University of Omer-Almukhtar, about 72  clinical dental students responded (response rate 94.7%). About 98.6% of the participants stated that they are taking medical history of their patients.  The rate of protective barriers compliance among the participating dental students was very high with the exception of protective eye glasses & face shields. In the present study, male & female participating dental students showed no significant difference in their attitude toward treating patients with infectious disease.  Conclusions: In the current survey, dental students showed excellent awareness of the cross-contamination control measures, but there was moderate compliance regarding the recommendations of cross-contamination control measures, & therefore the attitude of the dental students must be improved for the cross-contamination guidelines.

Keywords: cross-contamination control, dental students, disinfection, sterilization, knowledge, Aljabal-Alakhdar, Libya.