Bacterial contamination on the white coats of medical laboratory students at a tertiary care hospital

Background: White coats might be a potential source of infection and play a huge role in transmitting pathogenic bacteria in hospital setup as well as in the community. Objective: This cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate the bacterial contamination on white coats of students working in diagnostic laboratories and determine their antibacterial susceptibility. Methods: Swabs were collected from the sleeves and pockets of the white coat of 96 students working in various diagnostic labs in a tertiary care hospital and processed for bacteriological analysis based on standard procedures. Results: Among 96 white coats, bacterial contamination was observed in 63 white coats. Pockets of the white coats were highly contaminated with pathogenic bacteria than sleeves. Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus were isolated only from 13 white coats. The majority were Staphylococcus epidermidis, followed by Micrococcus luteus. All isolates of S. aureus were susceptible to antibiotics used. Few isolates of A. baumannii were resistant to ampicillin and amoxicillin. One isolate of P. aeruginosa exhibited resistance to Cefoperazone. Conclusion: White coats of students working in diagnostic labs were contaminated with both pathogenic and nonpathogenic bacteria, which can cause cross contamination and increase the spread of nosocomial infection. Bacteria resistant to antibiotics can lead to treatment complications. Thus, policies should be prepared and followed to reduce the risk of infectious disease transmission by following routine laboratory practices such as hand washing, frequent cleaning of white coats and disinfecting other fomites.