Background: Buruli ulcer, caused by Mycobacterium ulcerans, remains a public health issue in Benin. Treatments are based on antibiotics and surgery. Good hygiene is important for its management.
Objective: we assess the observance of contact precautions practices by healthcare workers.
Methods: Between March and October 2015, the promotion of hands hygiene and basic infection prevention practices were performed at a tertiary hospital in Benin. An effective education system was implemented to improve healthcare workers knowledge and compliance. The study period was divided in two. Period I corresponds to the promotion of standard precautions and providing hygiene equipment and materials. Period II: hand hygiene audits were conducted using the World Health Organization ‘five moments for hand hygiene’ observational tool. Samples were taken from hands of staff, concurrently, swabbing of environment was achieved. The isolates were identified, tested for antimicrobial susceptibility.
Results: there is no significant change for hand hygiene compliance globally, from 24.2%; (95% CI 21·1−36·9) to 33·3% after (31·8−41·3). About 95% of personnel preferred hand washing with soap and water. Multidrug-resistant bacteria, were still present on hands (89%) and environment samples (42%) despite good knowledge of hand hygiene by 80% of medical personnel.
Conclusion: Inadequate compliance was noticed despite good knowledge of standard precautions. The lack of qualified personnel and financial resources allocated for this program justified the weak compliance. Antimicrobial resistance is particularly harmful to the Buruli ulcer secondary wound infection treatment.