Mobile phones make it to the list of Hospital-Acquired Infections

After the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) received a research paper from doctors who built colonies of bacteria off their own mobile phones, the apex research body has urged all the hospitals to strictly follow guidelines on Hospital-Acquired Infections (HAI).

“Off late we have observed that mobile phones are a potential source of infection in hospitals and clinics. The ICMR has formulated guidelines to prevent HAI to be followed by all the healthcare institutions for patient safety.

We have done few studies where mobile phones of doctors have been found loaded with disease causing microorganisms. Hand washing is the basic practice to prevent several infections in all healthcare settings,” said Dr Soumya Swaminathan, Secretary, Department of Health Research, Union Health Ministry and Director General of ICMR. “We have also received individual researches from hospitals on the same phenomenon which will prove to be a significant source of information and research while coming up with further policies on HAI. Many relative researches are also underway in ICMR,” she said.

Dentists from ITS Dental College in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh have built bacterial colonies off 55 mobile phones of doctors and paramedical staff for research purpose and submitted the work to ICMR seeking publication in its coveted journals. The doctors in their study have stated that further research is required, it is evident that large sized phones gather more accumulation of bacteria because of more surface area available. Buttoned phones gather more accumulation and cannot be completely cleaned of the bacterial load.

“The type of cover of the mobile phone does not have much difference on bacterial accumulation. Weekly cleaning of the mobile phone with alcohol swabs is not at all sufficient. Daily cleaning with alcohol could be a reasonable protocol, but possibility of damage to the phone cannot be ruled out,” said Dr Achint Garg, author of the study. “Although cleaning the mobile phones with an alcohol swab significantly reduces the bacterial load, it is not a substitute for basic mobile phone hygiene practices and protocols required in a health care setting,” he said. 

Doctors have suggested that manufacturers should provide clear guidelines for the decontamination of mobile phones. Mobile phones easily escape from the purview of sterilization and infection control practices because it is a personal device owned by everyone and has not gained the attention that it should. Mobile phones in current world are an integral part of daily activities. Ranging from telephonic conversations to internet utilities, its applications are extremely varied. For students it acts as an educational tool as well. “People in non-healthcare sectors do not have to worry about the inevitable bacterial accumulations on their phones, but the scenario is significantly different for people in healthcare sectors, more so for doctors involved in direct patient care and treatment delivery,” said Dr Uday Pratap Singh, co author of the study.

Currently, there are no guidelines concerning mobile phone hygiene practices for hospitals.  “If infection control practices are to be applied in action comprehensively, items of personal use like mobile phones, pens, eye wear, key chains etc. need to be included within the list of items to be cleaned at least, if not disinfected,” said Dr Singh.