Vol. 2, Issue 2, Part A (2025)

Hand hygiene remains the most effective, economical, and universally applicable measure for preventing healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), which continue to affect millions of patients globally each year. Nursing students, as emerging healthcare professionals, frequently engage in direct patient care and invasive procedures during clinical postings, making strict adherence to hand hygiene protocols essential for patient safety. Despite structured educational programmes and widespread adoption of the WHO “Five Moments for Hand Hygiene,” multiple studies consistently report compliance rates below 50% among healthcare trainees, including nursing students. Barriers such as limited clinical experience, inadequate role modelling, time pressure, high patient loads, lack of supervision, and insufficient access to hand hygiene resources often contribute to suboptimal adherence.
Assessing current hand hygiene compliance among nursing students is crucial for identifying gaps between knowledge and bedside practice. Although students commonly demonstrate good theoretical understanding, translation of this knowledge into consistent behaviour remains challenging, increasing the risk of cross-transmission of pathogens. This research evaluates hand hygiene compliance among nursing students during clinical postings through observational audits and structured questionnaires. The research also examines adherence to WHO-recommended moments and explores the influence of educational and environmental factors on practice patterns [18, 19]. It was hypothesized that students with higher hand hygiene knowledge and positive attitudes would demonstrate significantly better compliance.
The findings aim to provide evidence-based recommendations to strengthen clinical teaching, enhance infection-prevention strategies, and cultivate a culture of patient safety within healthcare institutions. Understanding student behaviour during professional development is essential for designing targeted interventions, improving mentorship, and reinforcing skill-based training that supports sustained improvements in hand hygiene adherence.