ArticleInfection prevention in practice2021
Bacterial contamination of mobile phones of healthcare workers at the University Teaching Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia.
Article in Infection prevention in practice, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 24 papers.
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Who cites it
24 citing papers in PubMed.
- Mobile phone bacterial contamination among students and staff at Haramaya University, Eastern Ethiopia: A cross-sectional study.Medicine · 2026Article
- Study of Microbial Contamination of Mobile Phones of Dental and Medical Students and Its Potential Epidemiological Implications for Microbial Transmission.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Assessment of microbial contamination of mobile phones among medical staff, students, and visitors in a pediatric hematology-oncology ward and its relationship with infections among pediatric patients.Archives of medical science : AMS · 2026Article
- Extended spectrum betalactamase and carbapenemase producing gram negative bacteria from mobile phones of healthcare workers at Debre Berhan Hospital, Ethiopia.Scientific reports · 2025Article
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- Gender-specific antibiotic-resistance patterns and characterization of bacterial flora of undergraduate students' mobile phones and associated factors at a Nigerian university.BMC microbiology · 2025Article
- Exploring Multidrug-Resistant Gram-Positive Bacteria on Electronic Devices: A Comparative Experimental Study Based on the Gender of Healthcare and Nonhealthcare Workers.The Canadian journal of infectious diseases & medical microbiology = Journal canadien des maladies infectieuses et de la microbiologie medicale · 2025Article
- Design and Psychometric Evaluation of Nurses' Mobile Health Device Acceptance Scale (NMHDA-Scale): Application of the Expectation-Confirmation Theory.JMIR human factors · 2024Article
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- Review of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and antibiotic resistance genes within the one health framework.Infection ecology & epidemiology · 2024Review
- Colonization of bacterial and viral respiratory pathogens among healthcare workers in China during COVID-19 pandemic.Journal of oral microbiology · 2024Article
- Bacterial contamination of healthcare workers' mobile phones in Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Tropical medicine and health · 2023Article
- Bacterial Contamination of Healthcare Students' Mobile Phones: Impact of Specific Absorption Rate (SAR), Users' Demographics and Device Characteristics on Bacterial Load.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Mobile Phones: Reservoirs of Resistant Bacteria during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.Microorganisms · 2023Article
- Source-tracking ESBL-producing bacteria at the maternity ward of Mulago hospital, Uganda.PloS one · 2023Article
- Phenotypic and molecular characterization ofAIMS microbiology · 2023Article
- The Development of Technology to Prevent, Diagnose, and Manage Antimicrobial Resistance in Healthcare-Associated Infections.Vaccines · 2022Review
- Fungal contamination of medical students' mobile phones from the University of Belgrade, Serbia: a cross-sectional study.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- High Rate of Bacterial Contamination on Healthcare Worker's Mobile Phone and Potential Role in Dissemination of Healthcare-Associated Infection at Debre Berhan Referral Hospital, North Shoa Zone, Ethiopia.Risk management and healthcare policy · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundMobile telephones (henceforth 'phones') have become an essential part of everyday life in both healthcare and community settings. However, the widespread use of mobile phones in healthcare facilities is of concern because they can act as vehicles for transmitting pathogenic bacteria. This study aimed to investigate the bacterial contamination of mobile phones of healthcare workers (HCWs) at the University Teaching Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia.
methodsThis cross-sectional study, from May to July 2019, involved 117 HCWs. A self-administered questionnaire was used to gather sociodemographic and phone usage data. The mobile phones of HCWs were swabbed for culture and antimicrobial susceptibility testing.
resultsThe overall prevalence of mobile phone contamination was 79%. The predominant isolates were coagulase-negative staphylococci (50%),
conclusionMobile phones of HCWs carry potentially pathogenic bacteria and can be a source of healthcare-associated infections in healthcare settings. Hence, regulations regarding the use of mobile phones need to be developed, especially in critical areas, to reduce the dissemination of pathogenic bacteria from hands to phones and, potentially, to patients.
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