PREVALENCE AND CORRELATES OF SKIN DAMAGE ON THE HANDS OF NURSES

OBJECTIVE: To describe the prevalence and correlates of skin damage on nurses' hands. DESIGN: Prevalence survey using: self-report questionn aire of hand care regimens, problems, and skin condition, and visual e xamination of the hands at 30X magnification by trained investigators to evaluate degree of skin scaling. SETTING: Four hospitals: two in th e Mid-Atlantic and two ill the northern United States. PARTICIPANTS: C onvenience sample of 410 nurses working 30 hours or more per week in a cute care units. OUTCOME MEASURES: Damage to skin of the hands. RESULT S: Approximately one fourth of subjects (n = 106) mel the criteria for currently damaged hands; 85.6% (n = 351) reported ever having skin pr oblems. Damage was not correlated with age (p = 0.43), sex (p = 0.14), or skin type (p = 0.25), type of soap used at home (p = 0.58), report ed duration of handwashing (p = 0.12), or glove brand (p = 0.90), but was significantly correlated with the type of soap used at work (p = 0 .01), number of hand washes per shift (p = 0.0003), number of times gl oves were worn (p = 0.008), and study site (p = 0.009). Variables sign ificantly predictive of skin damage in a logistic regression analysis were type of soap used at work and number of times gloves were worn (p = 0.04). Geographic location was not a factor, because both the highe st and lowest prevalence of skin damage occurred in the northern study institutions. CONCLUSIONS: Damage to skin of the hands is a common an d potentially serious problem among nurses, and is associated with glo ving and handwashing practices rather than with geographic or demograp hic factors. Efforts to improve skin condition must focus on improving products and identifying any interactive effects between hand care pr oducts and glove materials and brands.