Hand hygiene knowledge and practices among domestic hajj pilgrims: implications for future mass gatherings amidst COVID-19
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Alqahtani, A
Barasheed, O
Alemam, A
Alhakami, M
Gadah, I
Alkediwi, H
Alzahrani, K
Fatani, L
Dahlawi, L
Alsharif, S
Shaban, R
Booy, R
Rashid, H
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Abstract
This study examined Hajj pilgrims’ knowledge and reported practice of hand hygiene. In Hajj 2019, a cross-sectional survey was undertaken in Mina, Makkah, Saudi Arabia, of domestic Saudi pilgrims aged ≥18 years by using a self-administered Arabic questionnaire that captured data on pilgrims’ socio-demographics, hand hygiene knowledge, and reported practices of hand cleaning following certain actions. A total of 348 respondents aged 18 to 63 (median 32) years completed the survey, of whom 200 (57.5%) were female. The mean (±standard deviation (SD)) hand hygiene knowledge score was 6.7 (±SD 1.9). Two hundred and seventy one (77.9%) and 286 (82.2%) of respondents correctly identified that hand hygiene can prevent respiratory and gastrointestinal infections respectively, but 146 (42%) were not aware that it prevents hand-foot-mouth disease. Eighty-eight (25.3%) respondents erroneously reported that hand hygiene prevents HIV. Washing hands with water and soap was the most preferred method practiced before a meal (67.5% (235/348)), after a meal (80.2% (279/348)), after toilet action (81.6% (284/348)), when hands were visibly soiled (86.2% (300/348)), and after waste disposal (61.5% (214/348)). Hajj pilgrims demonstrated a good knowledge and practice of hand hygiene, but there are gaps that are vital to control outbreaks such as COVID-19.
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Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease
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5
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4
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© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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Health services and systems
Public health
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Mahdi, H; Alqahtani, A; Barasheed, O; Alemam, A; Alhakami, M; Gadah, I; Alkediwi, H; Alzahrani, K; Fatani, L; Dahlawi, L; Alsharif, S; Shaban, R; Booy, R; Rashid, H, Hand hygiene knowledge and practices among domestic hajj pilgrims: implications for future mass gatherings amidst COVID-19, Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease, 2020, 5 (4), pp. 160