Os acidentes com presença de material biológico são uma realidade na prática odontológica. A utilização de medidas preventivas como a adoção das Precauções Padrão (PP) é essencial. Na vivência profissional na área da saúde, verifica-se certa hesitação dos cirurgiões-dentistas (CD) no que diz respeito à adesão de práticas seguras. Diante desse quadro, surgiu a seguinte indagação: que fatores podem associar-se aos níveis de adesão às PP, a fim de prevenir a exposição desses profissionais a material biológico? Desse modo, este estudo constituiu-se de uma investigação metodológica quantitativa com o objetivo de adaptar e validar um instrumento para verificação de fatores associados à adesão às PP entre CD. O instrumento compôs-se de 49 itens distribuídos em 5 dimensões. O processo de validação do instrumento seguiu as seguintes etapas: adaptação do instrumento para as situações que envolvem riscos aos cirurgiões-dentistas por meio da análise semântica e análise de conteúdo, as quais foram realizadas por um comitê de juízes. O instrumento adaptado foi aplicado entre os meses de maio a dezembro de 2008 para 224 cirurgiões-dentistas que atuavam na Rede Básica de Saúde dos municípios de Apucarana, Arapongas, Cambé, Ibiporã, Londrina e Rolândia, na região Norte do Estado do Paraná. Para análise das propriedades psicométricas, realizou-se validação de construto por meio de análise fatorial exploratória e teste de confiabilidade. Resultados da análise fatorial confirmaram itens divididos em três domínios: obstáculo para seguir PP; conhecimento da transmissão ocupacional do HIV e clima de segurança. A consistência interna dos domínios estimada pelo alfa de Cronbach variou de 0,73 a 0,88. Estes resultados evidenciam que o instrumento poderá ser utilizado por pesquisadores para avaliar os fatores de influência na adesão às PP entre os CD, considerando-se sua validade e confiabilidade. Em relação a análise descritiva exploratória dos itens, a dimensão Clima de segurança foi a que obteve a menor pontuação média (3,43 ± 0,62), enquanto a dimensão Obstáculo para seguir PP tanto quanto a dimensão Conhecimento da transmissão ocupacional do HIV apresentou pontuações bastante próximas, de (4,10 ±0,76) e (4,05 ±0,70), respectivamente. Estes resultados possibilitaram concluir que o CD tem uma percepção média em relação aos fatores individuais e aos relativos ao trabalho e uma percepção baixa dos fatores organizacionais, situação que pode favorecer a exposição destes profissionais a riscos desnecessários. / Accidents with biologic materials are customary in dental practice. Preventive measures such as the adoption of Standard Precautions are essential. In professional experience in healthcare some hesitation of the dentists on the adoption of safe practices has been verified. Therefore, the following quest aroused: what factors can be associated to the Standard Precautions levels of adhesion, in order to prevent the exposure of these professionals to biologic materials? Thus, this study proposes a quantitative methodological investigation in order to adapt and validate an instrument for the verification of factors associated with the adhesion to the Standard Precautions among dentists. The instrument was composed of 49 items distributed in 5 dimensions. The process of validation of the instrument involved the following steps: instrument matching for the situations that involve risk to the dentists through semantic and subject analysis which were carried out by a committee of judges. The adapted instrument was applied from May to December, 2008 to 224 dentists who worked at the public health system in the North of Paraná State in the following cities: Apucarana, Arapongas, Cambé, Ibiporã, Londrina and Rolândia. To analyze the psychometrical properties, a construct validation was performed through exploratory factor analysis and reliability test. Factor analysis results confirmed items divided into three areas: objection in following the Standard Precautions, knowledge about occupational transmission of HIV and safety atmosphere. The internal consistency of the domains which were estimated by the Cronbach\'s alpha varied from 0,73 to 0,88. These results show that the instrument can be used by researchers to evaluate the factors that influence the adhesion to the Standard Precautions among dentists, considering its validity and reliability. Regarding descriptive exploratory analysis of the items, the dimension of security atmosphere was the one that had the lowest average score (3.43 ± 0.62), while the objection to follow standard precautions as far as the knowledge about occupational transmission of the HIV virus presented very close scores of (4.10 ± 0.76) and (4.05 ± 0.70), respectively. These results allow the conclusion that dentists has an average perception concerning to individual and work-related factors and a low perception of organizational factors, which might facilitate the exposure of these professionals to unnecessary risk. The exploratory descriptive analysis of the items made it possible to conclude that not only the individual and organizational factors but also the ones related to work had a simultaneous association with the adhesion to the Standard Precautions among the dentists.

As Unidades de Terapia Intensiva atendem pacientes críticos, que demandam cuidados de alta complexidade. Com isso, a freqüente realização de procedimentos invasivos favorece a exposição do profissional e dos pacientes a riscos biológicos. Para diminuir os riscos associados ao trabalho dos profissionais que atuam nessas unidades, é imprescindível utilizar medidas preventivas durante a assistência das quais destacamos as precauções-padrão. Objetivos: Avaliar os fatores individuais, relativos ao trabalho e organizacionais relacionados à adesão às precauções-padrão por profissionais de enfermagem que atuam em terapia intensiva em um hospital universitário do interior paulista. Metodologia: Trata-se de um estudo de corte transversal, desenvolvido no Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto da Universidade de São Paulo, no período de dezembro de 2010 a junho de 2011. A população de estudo constituiu-se por 178 profissionais da equipe de enfermagem - enfermeiros, técnicos e auxiliares de enfermagem- que atuavam na assistência a pacientes em terapia intensiva, de duas unidades distintas da instituição. Os instrumentos para a coleta de dados foram escalas psicométricas do tipo Likert desenvolvidas por Gershon et al. (1995), traduzidas e validadas por Brevidelli e Cianciarullo (2009), somando 57 questões divididas em 10 escalas, que compreendem fatores individuais, do trabalho e organizacionais. A análise estatística foi feita por meio do software Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS), versão 15.0., utilizando-se estatística descritiva e teste de correlação de Pearson. Resultados: A maior parte dos profissionais foi do sexo feminino 171 (79,2) com predomínio da categoria de auxiliar de enfermagem com 94 (52,8%). Obteve-se que 79 (44,4%) dos profissionais trabalhavam 50 horas ou mais durante a semana. Na escala de adesão às precauções-padrão obteve-se um escore de 4,45 (DP=0,27) classificado como intermediário para as duas unidades. Houve correlação quando comparada com fatores individuais, para Escala de Personalidade de Risco (r=- 0,169; p=0,024) e fatores relativos ao trabalho representada pela Escala de Obstáculos para Seguir as precauções-padrão (r=-0,359; p=0,000). Para a unidade B os fatores organizacionais com a Escala de Clima de Segurança (r=0,243; p=0,014) apresentaram correlação estatisticamente significante quando comparados com a Escala de Adesão. Conclusão: Para as unidades A e B de terapia intensiva, a adesão às PP foi intermediária entre enfermeiros, técnicos e auxiliares de enfermagem, ou seja, não ocorreu em sua totalidade. O comportamento individual, a identificação de obstáculos e a organização do trabalho são aspectos que devem ser revistos, pois fatores individuais, relativos ao trabalho e organizacionais influenciaram na adesão às precauções-padrão por profissionais que atuam em terapia intensiva. / Introduction: Intensive Care Units serve critically ill patients requiring highly complex care. Thus, frequent invasive procedures promote the professional and the patients exposure to biological hazards. To reduce the risks associated with the work of professionals working in these units, it is essential to use preventive measures for the assistance of which we highlight the standard precautions. Objectives: To assess the individual factors related to work-related and organizational adherence to standard precautions for nurses working in intensive care at a university hospital in the interior of São Paulo. Methodology: This is a cross-sectional study, developed at the Hospital das Clinicas of the Faculty of Medicine of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo in the period of December 2010 to June 2011. The study population consisted of 178 professionals of the nursing staff - nurses, technicians and nursing assistants who worked in patient care in intensive care, two distinct units of the institution. The instruments for data collection were the psychometric Likert scales developed by Gershon et al. (1995), translated and validated by Brevidelli and Cianciarullo (2009), totaling 57 questions divided into 10 scales, which include individual factors, and organizational work. Statistical analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 15.0., Using descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation test. Results: Most professionals were 171 females (79.2) with a predominance of the category of nursing assistant with 94 (52.8%). It was found that 79 (44.4%) of the professionals were working 50 hours or more during the week. On a scale of adherence to standard precautions we obtained a score of 4.45 (SD = 0.27) classified as intermediate for the two units. There was a correlation when compared with individual factors to Risk Personality Scale (r =- 0.169, p = 0.024) and factors related to the work represented by the scale of Obstacles to follow the standard-precautions (r =- 0.359, p = 0.000). For the B unit the organizational factors with Safety Climate Scale (r = 0.243, p = 0.014) showed statistically significant when compared with the adherence scale. Conclusion: For the A and B intensive care units, adherence to SP was intermediate between nurses, technicians and nursing assistants, or did not occur in its entirety. The individual behavior, identification of obstacles and work organization must be reviewed because individual factors, related to work and organizational influence on adherence to standard precautions by professionals working in intensive care.

Abstract available in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine.

As Precauções- Padrão (PP) são medidas fundamentais para proteger pacientes e profissionais da área da saúde (PAS) da aquisição de microorganismos patogênicos. Entretanto, a adesão às PP é insatisfatória e vários motivos são descritos para essa baixa adesão. OBJETIVO: Analisar os fatores individuais, laborais e organizacionais associados com a adesão às PP de profissionais de enfermagem de uma instituição privada localizada na cidade de São Paulo. MÉTODO: Estudo transversal realizado com uma amostra de 291 profissionais de enfermagem, distribuídos proporcionalmente entre enfermeiros, técnicos e auxiliares que trabalhavam em setores críticos, semi-críticos e emergência. Os dados foram coletados no período de outubro de 2010 a janeiro de 2011. Para a coleta de dados, utilizou-se um instrumento com questões socio demográficas e escalas de Likert com 5 opções de respostas, segundo o referencial teórico Modelo Explicativo da Adesão às Precauções- Padrão. RESULTADO: 78,0% (226/291) dos profissionais de enfermagem responderam usar as PP na assistência a todos os pacientes. A análise multivariada mostrou que a adesão às PP foi associada a fatores individuais, expressa por profissionais mais jovens; fatores laborais, expressa por menor percepção de obstáculos e ter recebido treinamento; e fatores organizacionais, expressa por maior percepção de clima de segurança institucional. CONCLUSÕES: As intervenções planejadas para a melhoria da adesão às PP devem ser voltadas não somente para treinamentos em serviço, mas também para ações de redução de barreiras e melhoria do clima de segurança institucional. / Standard Precautions (SP) are key measures to protect patients and health professionals (HP) from the acquisition of pathogenic microorganisms. However, adherence to the SP is unsatisfactory and several reasons are described for this low adherence. OBJECTIVE: To analyze individual, organizational and labor factors associated with adherence to the SP of nursing professionals from a private institution located in the city of São Paulo. METHOD: Cross-sectional study carried out with a sample of 291 nursing professionals, proportionally distributed among nurses, nursing technicians and nursing auxiliaries who work in critical, semi-critical and emergency care areas. Data were collected between October 2010 and January 2011. For data collection an instrument with sociodemographic questions and Likert-type scales with 5 response options was used, according to the theoretical framework of the Explanatory Model of Adherence to Standard Precautions. RESULT: 78.0% (226/291) of the nursing professionals answered using the SP in the care to all patients. Multivariate analysis showed that adherence to SP was associated with individual factors, expressed by younger professionals; labor factors, expressed by lower perception of obstacles and having received training; and organizational factors, expressed by a greater perception of institutional safety climate. CONCLUSIONS: Interventions designed to improve the adherence to SP should target not only in-service training, but also actions to reduce barriers and improve the institutional safety climate.

Bakgrund: Ledrörelse- och belastningsrestriktioner är vanliga efter en total höftprotesoperation och syftar till att undvika att höftleden luxerar eller att suturerad muskulatur släpper under tiden som mjukdelarna läker, vanligen 6 – 8 veckor. Proteser och operationsteknikerna har förändrats med åren vilket lett till att antalet postoperativa luxationer minskat, och därav har vissa ortopedkliniker i Sverige börjat frångå postoperativa ledrörelse- och belastningsrestriktioner. Syfte: Att kartlägga vilka ledrörelse- och belastningsrestriktioner som rekommenderas efter en total höftprotesoperation på svenska ortopedkliniker samt om restriktionerna har förändrats under de senaste fem åren. Metod: Studien genomfördes som en kvantitativ tvärsnittsstudie med hjälp av en egenformulerad validerad webbenkät. Huvudresultat: Av de 16 svarande klinikerna uppgav 81 % att de hade någon form av restriktion (ledrörelse- eller belastningsrestriktion) för sina höftprotesopererade patienter. Vanligast var ledrörelserestriktioner där 62 % av respondenterna svarade ja på frågan ”rekommenderar din enhet/klinik patienter som opereras med höftprotesoperation några ledrörelserestriktioner”. Motsvarande siffra för belastningsrestriktioner var 50 %. En total avsaknad av restriktioner förekom hos 19 % av de svarande klinikerna. 63 % av klinikerna svarade att belastningsrestriktionerna hade förändrats för mer än 10 år sedan medan 50 % av klinikerna svarade att ledrörelserestriktionerna hade förändrats de senaste 5 åren. Resultatet i vår studie tydde på att användandet av postoperativa restriktioner har minskat. Den vanligaste förändringen var en minskning av användandet av postoperativa ledrörelserestriktioner, vilket hade skett hos 60 % av respondenterna. Konklusion: Vår studie visade att 4 av 5 svenska ortopedklinikerna som deltog i vår enkätstudie använde sig av ledrörelse- eller belastningsrestriktioner efter en höftprotesoperation och att 1 av 5 inte använde restriktioner. Hälften av klinikerna har förändrat ledrörelserestriktionerna de senaste fem åren, och färre än 40 % har förändrat belastningsrestriktionerna. / Background: Joint movement- and load precautions are common after a total hip arthroplasty and aims to prevent dislocation of the hip and to prevent the loss of sutured muscles while the soft tissue heal, usually 6-8 weeks. Prosthesis and surgical technics have changed over the years, which had led to a reduced number of postoperative hip dislocations and hence have some orthopedic clinics in Sweden begun abandon postoperative joint movementand load precautions. Aim: A mapping of the use of joint movement- and load precautions in Swedish orthopedic clinics and if there has been any changes in precautions during the last five years. Method: The study was conducted as a quantitative cross-sectional study with the help of a selfdeveloped validated online survey. Result: 81 % of the 16 respondent clinics stated they had some form of precautions (joint movement- or load precautions) for their hip replaced patients. The most common precaution was joint movement where 62% of respondents answered yes to the question "Does your unit/Clinic recommend patients undergoing surgery with total hip replacement any joint movement precautions". The corresponding figure for load precautions was 50%. A total absence of restrictions occurred in 19 % of the respondent clinics. 63 % responded that modifications of load precautions took place for more than 10 years ago while 50 % responded that the modifications of joint movement precaution took place over the past 5 years. The result in our study indicated that the use of precautions had decreased. The most common change was a decrease in jointmovementprecautions that occurred with 60 % of the respondents. Conclusion: In our study we found that 4 out of 5 Swedish orthopaedic clinics who participated in our survey recommended joint movement- or load precautions after a hip replacement and it also showed that 1 out of 5 didn´t recommend precautions. Half of the clinics had changed the movement precautions during the past five years, and less than 40 % had changed the load precautions.

<p>Everyday thousands of nurses are rendering bedside nursing care in health care settings as a result they are exposed to blood, body fluids and sharp objects that are contaminated with Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and HIV. Therefore they are at risk of getting infected. In 1996, standard precautions were implemented by the Centre of Disease Control to reduce the risk of transmission of micro-organisms from any source of infection in the hospital. In the year 2008, the three tertiary hospitals together in the Western Cape reported that they had 733 needle prick injuries. Therefore the aim of the study was to determine if nurses comply with and have adequate knowledge of standard precautions. A non-experimental design and a self administered questionnaire were used to collect the data for the study. The study was done at Tygerberg Hospital and the participants (n=143) that were involved in the study were all nursing categories (professional, enrolled nurse and auxiliary nurse). Stratified random sampling was used to ensure that there was a representation of all the nurses working in the different modules at Tygerberg Hospital. Therefore three wards were randomly selected from each module and all the nurses on duty working in the three selected wards were given a questionnaire by the Assistant Director of the specific module. After the data was collected it was analysed through the statistical package for social sciences. The findings of the study showed that nurses have inadequate knowledge regarding standard precautions and the mean score of the nurses overall self reported compliance of standard precautions was 87.5%. The results also showed that when patients are HIV positive nurses intend to over comply the use of personal protective equipment. No association was found between the nurses&rsquo / knowledge and compliance regarding standard precautions. It is therefore important that every nurse should be educated about the basic principles of standard precautions and also the policies and protocols of infection control in order to prevent each nurse from getting infected. Training needs to be implemented starting in the wards through the unit manager to improve all the nurses&rsquo / knowledge and practice.</p>

<p>Everyday thousands of nurses are rendering bedside nursing care in health care settings as a result they are exposed to blood, body fluids and sharp objects that are contaminated with Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and HIV. Therefore they are at risk of getting infected. In 1996, standard precautions were implemented by the Centre of Disease Control to reduce the risk of transmission of micro-organisms from any source of infection in the hospital. In the year 2008, the three tertiary hospitals together in the Western Cape reported that they had 733 needle prick injuries. Therefore the aim of the study was to determine if nurses comply with and have adequate knowledge of standard precautions. A non-experimental design and a self administered questionnaire were used to collect the data for the study. The study was done at Tygerberg Hospital and the participants (n=143) that were involved in the study were all nursing categories (professional, enrolled nurse and auxiliary nurse). Stratified random sampling was used to ensure that there was a representation of all the nurses working in the different modules at Tygerberg Hospital. Therefore three wards were randomly selected from each module and all the nurses on duty working in the three selected wards were given a questionnaire by the Assistant Director of the specific module. After the data was collected it was analysed through the statistical package for social sciences. The findings of the study showed that nurses have inadequate knowledge regarding standard precautions and the mean score of the nurses overall self reported compliance of standard precautions was 87.5%. The results also showed that when patients are HIV positive nurses intend to over comply the use of personal protective equipment. No association was found between the nurses&rsquo / knowledge and compliance regarding standard precautions. It is therefore important that every nurse should be educated about the basic principles of standard precautions and also the policies and protocols of infection control in order to prevent each nurse from getting infected. Training needs to be implemented starting in the wards through the unit manager to improve all the nurses&rsquo / knowledge and practice.</p>

As Precauções- Padrão (PP) são medidas fundamentais para proteger pacientes e profissionais da área da saúde (PAS) da aquisição de microorganismos patogênicos. Entretanto, a adesão às PP é insatisfatória e vários motivos são descritos para essa baixa adesão. OBJETIVO: Analisar os fatores individuais, laborais e organizacionais associados com a adesão às PP de profissionais de enfermagem de uma instituição privada localizada na cidade de São Paulo. MÉTODO: Estudo transversal realizado com uma amostra de 291 profissionais de enfermagem, distribuídos proporcionalmente entre enfermeiros, técnicos e auxiliares que trabalhavam em setores críticos, semi-críticos e emergência. Os dados foram coletados no período de outubro de 2010 a janeiro de 2011. Para a coleta de dados, utilizou-se um instrumento com questões socio demográficas e escalas de Likert com 5 opções de respostas, segundo o referencial teórico Modelo Explicativo da Adesão às Precauções- Padrão. RESULTADO: 78,0% (226/291) dos profissionais de enfermagem responderam usar as PP na assistência a todos os pacientes. A análise multivariada mostrou que a adesão às PP foi associada a fatores individuais, expressa por profissionais mais jovens; fatores laborais, expressa por menor percepção de obstáculos e ter recebido treinamento; e fatores organizacionais, expressa por maior percepção de clima de segurança institucional. CONCLUSÕES: As intervenções planejadas para a melhoria da adesão às PP devem ser voltadas não somente para treinamentos em serviço, mas também para ações de redução de barreiras e melhoria do clima de segurança institucional. / Standard Precautions (SP) are key measures to protect patients and health professionals (HP) from the acquisition of pathogenic microorganisms. However, adherence to the SP is unsatisfactory and several reasons are described for this low adherence. OBJECTIVE: To analyze individual, organizational and labor factors associated with adherence to the SP of nursing professionals from a private institution located in the city of São Paulo. METHOD: Cross-sectional study carried out with a sample of 291 nursing professionals, proportionally distributed among nurses, nursing technicians and nursing auxiliaries who work in critical, semi-critical and emergency care areas. Data were collected between October 2010 and January 2011. For data collection an instrument with sociodemographic questions and Likert-type scales with 5 response options was used, according to the theoretical framework of the Explanatory Model of Adherence to Standard Precautions. RESULT: 78.0% (226/291) of the nursing professionals answered using the SP in the care to all patients. Multivariate analysis showed that adherence to SP was associated with individual factors, expressed by younger professionals; labor factors, expressed by lower perception of obstacles and having received training; and organizational factors, expressed by a greater perception of institutional safety climate. CONCLUSIONS: Interventions designed to improve the adherence to SP should target not only in-service training, but also actions to reduce barriers and improve the institutional safety climate.

Magister Curationis - MCur / Everyday thousands of nurses are rendering bedside nursing care in health care settings as a result they are exposed to blood, body fluids and sharp objects that are contaminated with Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and HIV. Therefore they are at risk of getting infected. In 1996, standard precautions were implemented by the Centre of Disease Control to reduce the risk of transmission of micro-organisms from any source of infection in the hospital. In the year 2008, the three tertiary hospitals together in the Western Cape reported that they had 733 needle prick injuries. Therefore the aim of the study was to determine if nurses comply with and have adequate knowledge of standard precautions. A non-experimental design and a self administered questionnaire were used to collect the data for the study. The study was done at Tygerberg Hospital and the participants (n=143) that were involved in the study were all nursing categories (professional, enrolled nurse and auxiliary nurse). Stratified random sampling was used to ensure that there was a representation of all the nurses working in the different modules at Tygerberg Hospital. Therefore three wards were randomly selected from each module and all the nurses on duty working in the three selected wards were given a questionnaire by the Assistant Director of the specific module. After the data was collected it was analysed through the statistical package for social sciences. The findings of the study showed that nurses have inadequate knowledge regarding standard precautions and the mean score of the nurses overall self reported compliance of standard precautions was 87.5%. The results also showed that when patients are HIV positive nurses intend to over comply the use of personal protective equipment. No association was found between the nurses knowledge and compliance regarding standard precautions. It is therefore important that every nurse should be educated about the basic principles of standard precautions and also the policies and protocols of infection control in order to prevent each nurse from getting infected. Training needs to be implemented starting in the wards through the unit manager to improve all the nurses knowledge and practice. / South Africa

Magister Public Health - MPH / Introduction: The Universal Safety Precautions (USP) are a set of principles including practices and protocols, which is meant to reduce or prevent occupational exposures to blood borne pathogens among health care workers (HCWs), during the course of their duties in health care settings. Globally and in Nigeria, significant number of HCWs are currently being exposed to blood and other body fluids while working in the hospital setting (Amoran, 2013; Samuel et al., 2008; Akinboro et al., 2012; Ajibola et al., 1994; Okechukwu et al., 2012). These exposures contribute annually to about 16,000 HCV infections and 66,000 HBV infections among HCWs worldwide (Prüss-Üstün et al., 2003) and about 1000 cases of HIV per annum in Nigeria since the first recorded case in 1984 (Okechukwu et al., 2012; Patricia et al., 2007). The objectives of the study were to describe the awareness of the USP among HCWs in Kogi State Specialist Hospital (KSSH), Lokoja and to describe the adherence to the USP among HCWs at KSSH. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among HCWs working in departments where contacts with patients' blood and other body fluids are possible in KSSH. An anonymous self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection. Analysis of the data collected was with Software Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) V23.0.0 for Mac. Results: Of the 125 participants that returned their questionnaires, 37.6% were nurses, 17.6% were doctors and the remainder were laboratory staff, dentists and hospital attendants. Sixty four percent (64%) of them were females, 49.6% had tertiary education while their average age was 38.5 years. Awareness of and adherence to the USP were observed to be 5.6% and 2.4% respectively. Statistically, complete awareness of the USP was not significantly associated with complete adherence to the USP. More so, 3% and 2.2% of the participants with the number of years in services within the ranges of 5-9 years and 1-4 years respectively had complete adherence to the USP. Statistically significant association was only noted between participants' age and complete adherence to the USP. Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) and use of personal protective equipment (PPE) were the two USP principles with the lowest levels of awareness and adherence, with 46% and 47.6% on awareness respectively and, 43.8% and 44.6% on adherence respectively. Conclusion: The levels of awareness of and adherence to the USP among the HCWs in KSSH were observed to be very low. There is an urgent need for capacity building of the HCWs on the USP in the form of trainings, and in the long term, there is need to conduct a study to assess possible reasons for the observed outcome.