An audit of infection control practices amongst dental students in University of Malaya, Malaysia

A study was done to assess and compare the levels of infection control practices amongst Year 3, 4 and 5 undergraduate dental students at the Faculty of Dentistry, University of Malaya, Malaysia. This study also compared the levels of infection control practices between the operators and the assistants performing a similar task. A checklist was designed based on the Infection Control Guidelines published by the Faculty of Dentistry. The audit checklist criteria were specific to the operators and assistants or common to both. 10 pairs of students (operators and assistants) were randomly selected from Polyclinics A, B and C, representing Year 3, 4 and 5 students respectively (n=60). The subjects were audited as soon as they entered the clinic, during treatment and up until they exited the polyclinic. The data collected were analysed using SPSS and Rasch model. Year 3 students performed better infection control practices (1.43 logit) followed by Year 5 (0.96 logit) and Year 4 (0.94 logit) students. The operators in Year 5 and the assistants in Year 3 and 4 were more compliant to infection control practices. 100% of students complied with removal of gown before leaving the clinic. However, only 1.7% of dental students wore protective goggles or face shield during treatment and disinfected prostheses before and after inserting into patient’s mouth. Introduction and reinforcement of infection control practices should be incorporated at the beginning of each academic year for all students to allow for better practice and delivery of treatment to patients.