Hand hygiene and glove use behavior in an Italian hospital

In an Italian hospital, we observed that hand hygiene was performed in 638 (19.6%) of 3,253 opportunities, whereas gloves were worn in 538 (44.2%) 1,218 of opportunities. We observed an inverse correlation between the intensity of care and the rate of hand hygiene compliance (R-2 = 0.057; P<.001), but no such association was observed for the rate of glove use compliance (R-2 = 0.014; P = .078). Rates of compliance with hand hygiene and glove use recommendations follow different behavioral patterns.