Saunders et al. should be praised for their simple, yet elegant study on the prevalence of stethoscope
cleaning at a UK medical school.
1
Their findings are alarming, with only 3.9% of respondents cleaning their stethoscope
after every patient, and 9.7% cleaning it at least once daily. The real figures may
be even worse. The response rate to the questionnaire was 41%; if there was a degree
of responder bias, with those with an interest in stethoscope hygiene being more likely
to respond, then the non-responding 59% may have had even worse stethoscope hygiene.To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
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Reference
- Factors influencing stethoscope cleanliness among clinical medical students.J Hosp Infect. 2013; 84: 242-244
Article info
Publication history
Published online: August 05, 2013
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© 2013 The Healthcare Infection Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
