OBJECTIVES

The aim of the study was to determine hand hygiene knowledge and behavior of the general population to understand the knowledge gap.

METHODS

An investigation by using a cross-sectional study design was conducted within general population in southern part of India from November 2020 to February 2021 via online platform like what’s app, LinkedIn and through emails. Hand washing and drying questionnaire was used to assess the knowledge and behavior in general population. Chi-square Anova statistical data analysis was performed with the help of SPSS software.

RESULTS

A total of 379 study population were responded to the survey questionnaire. Overall, female gender had significantly better knowledge towards hand hygiene when compared to males (5.71±1.55 vs 5.18±1.32; p<0.05). 95.25% of the respondents answered that hand hygiene practice became more frequent during infectious outbreaks. Though most of our study population indicated that they perform hand cleaning under various explicit circumstances such as while cooking, prior to eating, after pee or defecation, after removal of trash container and once they cough/sneeze or when the hands are noticeably filthy, they indicated that they use water and soap for cleaning their hands than preferring ABHR, water alone. Concerning hand drying more males dry their hand utilizing personal towel than females (97.5% vs 94.22%) p<0.05.

CONCLUSIONS

The study results shows that female study population generally have an improved knowledge level and better HH conduct when compared to male study population. The fallacy of study population associated with HH were perceived among general public. The age of 18–39 years old, educational level and female gender were the defensive reasons for improved HH knowledge among general population in the study. The findings of this study can give information which can be helpful to enhance wellbeing advancement and make missions to achieve diligent improvement in HH practices.