Infection Prevention Performance among In-Flight Cabin Crew in South Korea

Jaegeum Ryu, Jungha Kim and Smi Choi-Kwon
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Jaegeum Ryu: College of Nursing, Seoul National University, Seoul 03080, Korea
Jungha Kim: Aeromedical Center, KoreanAir, Seoul 07505, Korea
Smi Choi-Kwon: College of Nursing, Seoul National University, Seoul 03080, Korea

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 12, 1-11

Abstract: COVID-19 was declared a worldwide pandemic in 2020; thus, preventing in-flight infection transmission is important for stopping global spread via air travel. Infection prevention (IP) performance among aircraft cabin crew is crucial for preventing in-flight transmission. We aimed to identify the level of IP performance and factors affecting IP performance among aircraft cabin crew during the COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea. An online survey was conducted with 177 cabin crew members between August and September 2020. The survey assessed IP performance, and IP awareness, using a five-point Likert scale, and also evaluated simulation-based personal protective equipment (PPE) training experience, and organizational culture. The average IP performance score was 4.56 ± 0.44. Although the performance level for mask-wearing was high (4.73 ± 0.35), hand hygiene (HH) performance (4.47 ± 0.56) was low. Multivariate analysis showed that IP performance was significantly associated with IP awareness ( p < 0.05) and simulation-based PPE training experience ( p < 0.05). Since HH performance was relatively low, cabin crew and airlines should make efforts to improve HH performance. Furthermore, a high level of IP awareness and PPE training experience can improve IP performance among cabin crew members. Therefore, simulation-based PPE training and strategies to improve IP awareness are essential for preventing in-flight infection transmission.

Keywords: COVID-19; pandemic; infection control; inflight transmission; aircraft (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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