Nurses work in challenging places like hospitals and intensive care units. They are high-risk candidates for contracting hand dermatitis. This risk can get lowered by carrying out behavioral changes in the workplace. The researchers conducted a trial to evaluate the clinical and cost-effective benefits of such behavioral interventions.
The objective was to assess the role of intervention in reducing hand eczema. First-year students and nurses from 25 medical establishments are the study population. At control sites, they received the usual care. At intervention sites, they had access to the behavioral program and moisturizer creams. The blind randomization method helped to conceal allotments. The baseline dermatitis got adjusted at the follow-up to study dermatitis prevalence at both sites.
The intervention and control sites were 14 and 21 in number. Around 2040 (69.5%) nurses agreed to participate and are part of the analysis. About 1727 (84.7%) participants completed the baseline questions. Overall, 91.6% of ICU and 84% of student nurses completed the questionnaires. Out of these, 57.6% had baseline hand photographs and 12 to 15-month follow-ups. The odds at intervention and control sites were 0.72 and 0.62, respectively.
The odds got calculated at a confidence interval of 95%.
No study subject had any adverse indications, but the results were insufficient to conclude the intervention’s effectiveness.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/bjd.19359
