Why Hand Hygiene Still Fails in Hospitals
2 What Compliance Figures Tell Us
A 2022 review of 105 studies reported pooled observed compliance of 52% for nurses and 45% for physicians. The findings give a sense of the gap between expected and observed practice, but interpreting them requires caution. Differences between studies were very large.
3 The Conditions Around a Missed Opportunity
Afework and Tamene's 2025 review brought together 28 qualitative studies and grouped reported barriers into behavioral, organizational, physical, and interpersonal categories. This helps explain why another reminder may leave a problem unresolved.