Nasal Carriage of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus among Health Care Workers in Tertiary and Regional Hospitals in Dar es Salam, Tanzania

Table 1

Demographic and clinical characteristics of study participants.

Characteristic	Frequency	Percentage (%)
Age group (years)
<45	325	85.8
>45	54	14.2
Sex
Male	157	41.4
Female	222	58.6
Hospital
Amana	102	26.9
Temeke	104	26.9
MNH	99	26.2
ORCI	74	19.5
Department/ward
Medical wards	203	53.6
Surgical wards	171	45.1
ICU	5	1.3
Profession
Doctors	182	48.0
Nurses	169	44.6
Others	28	7.4
Duration in health care services
<5 years	171	45.1
>5 years	208	54.9
History of antibiotic use
Yes	185	48.7
No	194	51.3
History of chronic illness
Yes	42	11.1
No	337	88.8
Hand washing
Frequently	360	9.1
Occasionally	17	4.5
No	2	0.5

MNH, Muhimbili National Hospital; ORCI, Ocean Road Cancer Institute; ICU, intensive care unit; anesthesiologist and radiotherapist.