Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40433679›Full record

ArticleJournal of advanced nursing2026

Attitudes and Perceptions Toward Hand Hygiene Among Nursing Students and Nurses: A Cross-Sectional Comparative Survey.

Per-Ola Blomgren, Lisa Hultin, Johan Westerbergh, Katarina Hjelm

Abstract readComparative Study
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of advanced nursing, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Nursing Students' Knowledge Among Healthcare-Associated Infections: A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025
    Pooled it
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Per-Ola BlomgrenDepartment of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Uppsala University Hospital, Uppsala, Sweden.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9316-1609
Lisa HultinDepartment of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Uppsala University Hospital, Uppsala, Sweden.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8270-8560
Johan WesterberghUppsala Clinical Research Center, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.
Katarina HjelmDepartment of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Uppsala University Hospital, Uppsala, Sweden.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9096-9119

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

aimTo describe and compare attitudes toward hand hygiene and the perceived effectiveness of prevention methods among nursing students and registered nurses at a university and its affiliated university hospital.

designA descriptive cross-sectional comparative survey.

methodsA total of 201 first- and final-semester nursing students and registered nurses completed the World Health Organisation's 'Perceptions Survey for Health-Care Workers'. The survey examined perceptions on hand hygiene, patient safety and the usefulness of improvement measures. Responses were analysed using descriptive statistics.

resultsNursing students consistently rated the importance of hand hygiene and related interventions higher than registered nurses. Students particularly emphasised the availability of hand disinfectants, ongoing education and supportive leadership. Both groups acknowledged the role of management support, regular feedback and organisational policies in reinforcing optimal hand hygiene.

conclusionDifferences in attitudes between nursing students and registered nurses underscore the need for ongoing education, strong managerial involvement and supportive policies to sustain adherence. Strengthening these factors can help maintain positive perceptions formed during training and enhance patient safety in clinical practice. IMPLICATIONS FOR THE PROFESSION AND/OR PATIENT CARE: Educational curricula and workplace strategies that prioritise hand hygiene may help lower healthcare-associated infections. Management-led feedback, continuous training and accessible hand hygiene resources offer additional support for safe patient care. IMPACT: What problem did the study address? Low adherence to hand hygiene is a key driver of preventable infections. What were the main findings? Nursing students rated hand hygiene and improvement measures more highly than registered nurses, highlighting a need for strategies that sustain positive attitudes during the transition from education to clinical practice. Who will benefit? Nurse educators, clinical leaders and healthcare workers can use these findings to improve infection prevention across educational and practice settings. REPORTING

methodWe adhered to STROBE guidelines for cross-sectional research. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: No patients or members of the public were involved in designing or conducting this study, which focused on perceptions of nursing students and registered nurses.

Indexed as

Attitude of Health PersonnelHand HygieneNursing Staff, HospitalStudents, NursingAdultCross InfectionCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHealth Knowledge, Attitudes, PracticeHumansInfection ControlMaleMiddle AgedSurveys and QuestionnairesYoung Adultattitudescomparative studycross‐sectional surveyhand hygieneinfection preventionnursingnursing studentsregistered nurses

Identifiers

PMID40433679
PMCPMC12907585

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.