Table 1.

Hand Hygiene Scenario

You are in the NICU with your baby and a staff member comes to examine your baby. You have not seen the doctor or nurse wash his or her hands, and the doctor or nurse does not appear to be planning to do so.

Questions (Response Format – 5 point Likert-type scale) Assume the doctor or nurse did not wash his or her hands right before coming to examine your baby. How great is the potential for harm to your baby in this situation? (Very Low – Very High) Assume the person about to examine your baby is a nurse. How likely are you to insist that the nurse wash his or her hands? (Very Unlikely – Very Likely) Assume the person about to examine your baby is a medical resident. How likely are you to insist the resident wash his or her hands? (Very Unlikely – Very Likely) Assume the person about to examine your baby is the Chief Neonatologist. How likely are you to insist this person wash his or her hands? (Very Unlikely – Very Likely)

Free text questions: If you were going to say something to the person about to examine your baby, what might you say? What are the most important things influencing your decisions in this situation?

From Predictors of likelihood of speaking up about safety concerns in labour and delivery. A. Lyndon, J. B. Sexton, K.R. Simpson, A. Rosenstein, K.A. Lee, and R.M. Wachter, BMJ Quality and Safety, 21(9), 791– 799, 2012. Adapted with permission from BMJ Publishing Group Ltd.