Perceptions of a healthcare-associated infections reporting system in a Tunisian university hospital

Objective: The implementation of a healthcare-associated infections reporting system is a principal component of infection control and quality improvement policies in healthcare institutions. This study was designed to determine the perceptions of health professionals concerning implementation of a healthcare-associated infections reporting system and to analyse factors influencing these perceptions. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study conducted in 2012 using a predefined, pre-tested and self-administered questionnaire in 380 health professionals working in 16 different departments of Farhat Hached University Hospital, Tunisia. Results: The majority of respondents (71.8%) reported that no healthcare-associated infections surveillance procedure had been implemented in their departments. However, most respondents (93%) recognised the value of implementation of a healthcare-associated infections reporting system in order to provide them with corrective actions (77%), to support the investigation o f epidemic and emerging phenomena (49%) and to share experiences about the prevalence of healthcare-associated infections and their risk factors (44%). Conclusion: Staff training and development of a regulatory framework are essential to implementation and correct functioning of a healthcare-associated infections reporting system.