A Study of the Potentially Harmful Pathogens on Environmental Surfaces in Healthcare Facilities in Edo State, Nigeria.

Abstract

Introduction: Inadvertent exposure to environmental and airborne pathogens can result in adverse patient outcomes and transmission of hospital acquired infections (HAIs) in healthcare workers (HCWs). Without effective infection control, diseases may be readily transmitted from patient to patient and to a lesser extent, from patient to HCWs.
Objective:  To determine potential pathogens present on environmental surfaces in secondary and tertiary healthcare facilities (HCFs) in Edo State, Nigeria.
Method:  Environmental sampling and analysis was done to determine presence of potential pathogens in nine (9) health facilities. Sterile swabs were used to collect surface samples from non-absorbent surfaces in the health facilities. A total of 324 samples were analyzed. All the isolates were tested for their susceptibility to the various common antimicrobial agents using the standard agar disk diffusion technique. The antimicrobial agents used in this study were gentamycin, nalidixic acid, nitrofurantoin, ampicilin, co-trimoxazole, cefuroxine, ceftazidine, augmentin, ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin and ceftriaxone.
Results:  Potentially harmful pathogens namely Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus spp, Proteus spp, Escherichia coli and Klebsiella spp were identified in the samples from the health facilities and these were resistant to antibiotics which are commonly prescribed and in the national essential drug list.
Conclusion:  The study revealed presence of potentially pathogenic microorganisms on the physical surfaces of secondary and tertiary healthcare facilities in Edo State, Nigeria. Health facilities need to develop and implement infection prevention and control programmes for the protection of patients, patient care givers and healthcare