Abstract
Background and Purpose:The purpose of this article is to introduce a theoretical foundation, the healthcare environment theory (HET), tested in a quantitative, cross-sectional, overt observational study measuring the association of demographic variables with consistent hand hygiene compliance of the ICU nurse.Methods:Six environments found in a hospital ICU setting (family, church, work, administration, community, and culture) work bi-directionally to influence and be influenced by the nurse, simultaneously influencing each of the other environments in a multidirectional manner. The HET was used as the theoretical foundation for a study, which included a convenience sample of registered nurses (RNs) from five ICUs (64 participating RNs) in four hospitals in Texas who were observed for a total of 18 days (144 hours). The desired sample size of 613 hand hygiene opportunities for each ICU was obtained in 3 days of observation at 3 ICUs, 4 days in one ICU, and 5 days in one ICU. The six environments were used to support the results observed.Results:Through the variables of age and having children, hand hygiene rates were influenced by the family environment. Community environment was associated with a change in hand hygiene behavior in hospital hand hygiene rates in regards to age of the nurse. Younger nurses had higher hand hygiene compliance rates than older nurses.Implications for Practice:The different hospital environments surrounding the nurse can be used to explain hand hygiene compliance rates in association with demographic variables.
Publisher
Springer Publishing Company