Journal of Occupational

Background: Nosocomial infections are an important cause of hospital mortalities. Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) carriers among medical staff are an important source of nosocomial infections. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of the nasal carriers of S. aureus and antibiotic resistance in staff of Nikuee Hospital, Qom, Iran.

Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 152 health care workers (HCWs) were assessed to determine the frequency of nasal carriage of S. aureus, the rates of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), and their antibiotic resistance profiles in Nikuee Hospital in 2012. Clinical samples were cultured and S. aureus was detected using conventional bacteriologic methods. Antimicrobial susceptibility patterns against penicillin, vancomycin, erythromycin, clindamycin, cefazolin, co-trimoxazole, and doxycycline were evaluated using the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion technique. Methicillin resistance was confirmed by oxacillin disk diffusion test. Data were analyzed in SPSS software using chi-square test and independent two-sample t-test.

Results: Among the processed samples, 34.2% illustrated nasal carriage of S. aureus, and among them, 23.5% were carriers of MRSA. None of the isolates were resistant to vancomycin. However, 96.1%, 33.3%, 27.5%, 19.6%, 9.8%, and 15.7% resistance to penicillin, erythromycin, clindamycin, cefazolin, co-trimoxazole, and doxycycline were observed. There was no significant relationship between sex, age, and number of years of healthcare service and positive nasal carriage.

Conclusions: Data obtained in this study revealed high prevalence of nasal carriage of S. aureus (34.2%) in HCWs at Nikuee Hospital. Therefore, it can be concluded that the role of the hospital staff in Nikuee Hospital as a source of staphylococcal infections is prominent. Thus, to prevent nosocomial infections, we recommend the identification and treatment of the carriers among the staff of other hospitals.

Background: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is resistant to most antibiotics and is an important pathogen of nosocomial infections. The prevalence of community (CA-MRSA) and hospital acquired methicillin-resistant S. aureus (HA-MRSA) infection is increased. In this study we investigated the frequency of MRSA colonization and its antibiotic susceptibility in students of Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Iran.

Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we evaluated 200 nursing, midwifery and paramedical students. Nasal swabs were taken from all cases and were cultured on a blood medium agar. Methicillin resistance was confirmed using Oxacillin and cefoxcitin disks. Inducible clinadamycin resistance was identified using D-zone test. Demographic and specific information were collected by questionnaire. Data were analyzed by chi-square test.

Results: Among 200 studied cases, the frequency of nasal carriers for S. aureus was 5%. Six (60%) out of 10 S. aureus isolates were MRSA strains. Fifty percent of MRSA and 25% of methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) were resistant to clindamycin. Four out of 6 strains of MRSA and 1 of the MSSA strains were resistant to erythromycin and D test was positive in 50% of cases.

Conclusions: Nasal carriers of the resistant strains of S. aureus are always a serious threat to themselves and others. The rate of MRSA colonization, especially clindamycin-resistant strains, was high among studied cases, emphesizing the need for screening S. aureus.

Background: Laboratory wastes are one of the environmental issues of developing countries and cause diseases and epidemics. Laboratory waste management is planned with the aim of preventing unfavorable effects on human health and the environment. The aim of the present study was to determine the status of medical waste management in clinical laboratories affiliated with Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Iran, in 2015.

Materials and Methods: The present study was conducted through a census in all clinical laboratories of Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences. Data were collected using a checklist that was designed and confirmed by the Iranian Health and Treatment Ministry. After administrative coordination, the checklist was completed through visits and interviews. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive tests in SPSS software.

Results: The results showed that, in 40% of cases, individuals responsible for the collection of waste had received the necessary training. In addition, in 28.6% of cases, containers were labeled in order to determine the type of waste inside the container. In 57.1% of laboratories, there was no list of chemicals which must not be mixed during waste collection. The waste was disinfected using an autoclave in only 14.3% of cases. 

Conclusions: In the present study, the waste classification operation of the majority of laboratories was incomplete. In order to reduce contamination in these centers, measures must be taken regarding the disposal of waste at the site of its production. Furthermore, individuals responsible for collection and transference of waste must comply with personal protection measures.

Background: Today, occupational safety play the vital role to reduce the number of accidents. In other words, it is necessary to pay attention to improving the safety performance of employees in organizations. Indeed, safety performance is part of safety activities, describing the behavioral aspect of employees and being influenced by various factors. The purpose of this research is to provide a structural interpretation model for improving the safety performance behavior of employees in the industrial and mining city of Shahr-e-Babak.
Materials and methods: This research was applied in terms of purpose and descriptive in terms of data collection. Prioritization of research variables was performed using a fuzzy hierarchical process (AHP), and interpretive structural modeling was used to identify and develop a model for the association between variables. A pairwise comparison questionnaire was used to prioritize the factors. The statistical population was safety experts. In this study, a purposive sampling method with a sample size of 25 people was used.
Results: According to the results of data analysis, a total of 4 levels (first level: personality traits of conscientiousness; second level: safety climate; third level: safety knowledge, management, attitude, and motivation; fourth level: safety participation, training, and observance) were identified as effective factors in improving safety performance. Based on the results obtained in this study, except for safety participation as one of the dependent variables, all other factors were autonomous variables. These factors had poor conductivity and dependency.
Conclusion: It is concluded that by recognizing the factors affecting the improvement of employee safety performance at different levels of the structural model and considering their impact at each level, it is possible to provide programs to reinforce these factors for improving employee safety performance.