Table 2.

Implementation of infection control measures in 88 tuberculosis (TB)-designated hospitals

	Implementation
Infection control measures	N	Per cent
Managerial and administrative infection control
Establishing TB infection control committee	51	58
Setting a TB infection control regulation or plan in the TB clinic/ward	72	82
Pre-employment infection control training for staff	74	84
Job training on TB infection control measures	60	68
Regulations for regular monitoring of TB infection control in high-risk areas (at least quarterly)*	43	49
Regulation for prompt sputum test for patients with TB	84	95
Rapid referral rules for patients with suspected TB	86	97
Provision of expedited priority service to shorten the stay of patients with TB	37	42
Arranging a separate waiting area for suspected patients	40	46
Health education regarding coughing etiquette and respiratory hygiene for patients	84	95
Environmental infection control
Dedicated TB outpatient waiting area	68	77
Dedicated sputum collection area (well-ventilated area)†	56	64
Separate entrance for healthcare workers in the TB outpatient clinic	60	68
Separate entrance for healthcare workers in the inpatient TB ward‡	63	85
Regular monitoring of natural and mechanical ventilation (at least quarterly)*	50	57
Daily disinfection of TB outpatient consulting room§	85	97
Daily disinfection of inpatient TB wards§	74	100
Daily disinfection of outpatient waiting room§	83	94
Daily disinfection of sputum collection area§	84	96
Daily disinfection of radiology department§	73	83
Personal respiratory protection
Supplying TB staff with N95 respirators	85	97
Fit testing on N95 respirators	44	50
Staff screening for TB at least annually	65	74
Offering training on TB infection control	81	92
Annual TB infection control knowledge tests for staff	61	69
Regular monitoring of mask wearing among TB staff (at least quarterly)	75	85

*According to the China TB infection control manual¹⁸ and China's code for design of infectious diseases hospital,¹⁹ the infection control measures in the TB clinic should be monitored and meet the requirements in these two regulations.

†A dedicated sputum collection area is where sputum production can be collected in a well-ventilated area.

‡Of all the TB-designated hospitals, only 74 healthcare facilities had inpatient TB wards.

§The disinfection measures by the hospitals complied with the ‘Regulation of disinfection technique in healthcare settings’.²⁰