Knowledge level of students at the Kragujevac Medical School about nosocomial infections

To investigate differences in clinical and pre-clinical medical students' knowledge of nosocomial infections (NI). Cross-sectional survey. Questionnaires was answered and returned by 352 of 453 student (77.7%). The results indicated that students knew the definition of NI (70.1% correct answers) and their reservoirs (86%). The bacteria as etiological agents was the most frequent answer (76.4%), but 30.9% students did not knew at least one multidrug-resistant bacteria. About one half of the students (54.4%) knew that contact was the most frequent mode of NI transmission, but hand washing as preventive measure was cited by only 18.8% of students. Significantly statistical differences about NI in our country, etiology NI and preventive measures, and perception of risk for transmission of hepatitis B for health-care personnel were founded by year of training, by expectation that final-year medical students as more successfully, while pre-clinical students knew more about mode of NI transmission. Pre-clinical students who had previously finished nursing school knew more about multidrug-resistant bacteria than those who had finished some other secondary school, but showed a lower knowledge about definition and most important preventive measures of NI. Clinical students who had previously finished nursing school knew more about frequency NI in our country, reservoirs and preventive measures of NI than those who had finished some other secondary school. Data support the need for additional information about nosocomial infections, especially practical work in prevention, in order to get complete knowledge about nosocomial infections.