Beyond the patient: Inanimate objects as reservoirs for potential pathogenic bacteria and antimicrobial resistance patterns in hospital wards, a cross-sectional study from Goba Referral Hospital.
- 1College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Madda Walabu University, Robe, Ethiopia. [email protected].
- 2College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Madda Walabu University, Robe, Ethiopia.
Abstract
Background
Inanimate objects can serve as carriers for the transmission of potential pathogenic bacteria, especially those exhibiting multidrug resistant. Multidrug-resistant bacteria are significantly contributing to healthcare-associated infections.Methods
Swab samples were collected from 185 inanimate objects using stratified simple random sampling for this cross-sectional study. Standard bacteriological techniques were used to identity and verify the isolated bacteria. The Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method was employed to identify the antimicrobial susceptibility of the isolates. After that, SPSS version 26.0 was used to analyze the data, using bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses to evaluate associations. 95% confidence intervals and odds ratios were used to report associations, and p < 0.05 was used as the threshold for statistical significance.Results
Of the 185 inanimate objects sampled, 65 (35.1%) showed bacterial growth, yielding a total of 77 bacterial isolates. The major microorganisms were found in the gynecological and surgical wards. Floor 16 (20.8%), bed 13 (16.9%), and bedside Table 13 (16.9%) were the most contaminated items. Among the overall isolates, Staphylococcus aureus 20 (26%) and coagulase-negative staphylococci 18 (23.4%) were the most common gram-positive, while Acinetobacter spp., 12 (15.6%) and Enterobacter spp., 7 (9.1%) were the predominant gram-negative isolates. 68 (88.3%) of the 77 detected bacteria were multidrug resistant. Gynecology ward p-value 0.000 (AOR = 15.372, 95% CI = 3.520-67.129) and surgical ward p-value 0.009 (AOR = 6.060, 95% CI = 1.562-23.509) showed a significant association.Conclusion
This study indicated that bacterial contamination was highly common with floors, beds, and, bedside tables, especially in the surgical and gynecological wards. S. aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococcus: the majority of bacteria showed multidrug resistance, which presented a serious risk for infections linked to healthcare. To lessen the burden of multidrug-resistant bacteria in the hospital setting, it is highly advised to strengthen infection prevention and control measures.
Related
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BibTeX
@article{esmael2026beyond,
title = {{Beyond the patient: Inanimate objects as reservoirs for potential pathogenic bacteria and antimicrobial resistance patterns in hospital wards, a cross-sectional study from Goba Referral Hospital.}},
author = {Jemal Esmael and Mohammedaman Mama and Awel Kedir and Wakuman Taye},
journal = {BMC microbiology},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1186/s12866-026-05369-x},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42958046},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Beyond the patient: Inanimate objects as reservoirs for potential pathogenic bacteria and antimicrobial resistance patterns in hospital wards, a cross-sectional study from Goba Referral Hospital.
AU - Jemal Esmael
AU - Mohammedaman Mama
AU - Awel Kedir
AU - Wakuman Taye
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/01
JO - BMC microbiology
DO - 10.1186/s12866-026-05369-x
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42958046
AB - Background Inanimate objects can serve as carriers for the transmission of potential pathogenic bacteria, especially those exhibiting multidrug resistant. Multidrug-resistant bacteria are significantly contributing to healthcare-associated infections.Methods Swab samples were collected from 185 inanimate objects using stratified simple random sampling for this cross-sectional study. Standard bacteriological techniques were used to identity and verify the isolated bacteria. The Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method was employed to identify the antimicrobial susceptibility of the isolates. After that, SPSS version 26.0 was used to analyze the data, using bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses to evaluate associations. 95% confidence intervals and odds ratios were used to report associations, and p < 0.05 was used as the threshold for statistical significance.Results Of the 185 inanimate objects sampled, 65 (35.1%) showed bacterial growth, yielding a total of 77 bacterial isolates. The major microorganisms were found in the gynecological and surgical wards. Floor 16 (20.8%), bed 13 (16.9%), and bedside Table 13 (16.9%) were the most contaminated items. Among the overall isolates, Staphylococcus aureus 20 (26%) and coagulase-negative staphylococci 18 (23.4%) were the most common gram-positive, while Acinetobacter spp., 12 (15.6%) and Enterobacter spp., 7 (9.1%) were the predominant gram-negative isolates. 68 (88.3%) of the 77 detected bacteria were multidrug resistant. Gynecology ward p-value 0.000 (AOR = 15.372, 95% CI = 3.520-67.129) and surgical ward p-value 0.009 (AOR = 6.060, 95% CI = 1.562-23.509) showed a significant association.Conclusion This study indicated that bacterial contamination was highly common with floors, beds, and, bedside tables, especially in the surgical and gynecological wards. S. aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococcus: the majority of bacteria showed multidrug resistance, which presented a serious risk for infections linked to healthcare. To lessen the burden of multidrug-resistant bacteria in the hospital setting, it is highly advised to strengthen infection prevention and control measures.
SN - 1471-2180
ER -