Awareness among medical students in Islamabad and Rawalpindi regarding use of anti-bacterial soaps: A cross-sectional study

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the knowledge, practices and attitudes of undergraduate medical students about anti-bacterial soaps and hand sanitizers. Methodology: This was a cross-sectional study conducted with the help of a self-designed, validated online and paperback questionnaire.  The questions were based on knowledge, attitudes and practices of students regarding antibacterial soaps and hand sanitizers. Results: A total of 474 students participated in the study. Majority of the students preferred medicated soaps (55.7%) and hand sanitizers (41.6%) for daily use and considered these products to be superior to regular non-medicated soaps and hand sanitizers. Television commercials (61.8%) were the most common source of information about these products. Medical students found it important to further increase the use of medicated soaps for better protection against disease causing microbes. Conclusion: Majority of the study participants were conscious about hygiene and hand sanitization because of interaction with patients. Moreover, most of the students perceived medicated soaps and hand sanitizers to be effective for protection against disease causing microbes under the influence of media marketing campaigns.