Mobile phone surveillance and relationship between quantitative cultures and type of mobile device: A pilot study

Aim In this study an attempt was made to compare the mobile phone microbiota from health care workers among various departments and individuals from community not exposed to health care and correlate the quantum of bacterial load with the type of mobile phone. Background Inanimate object like mobile phones in the hospital environment are contaminated and are known to be considered as sources of Hospital Care Associated Infection (HCAI). It is also important to know the bacterial load on mobile phones and knowledge regarding mobile phone as source of nosocomial infection among health care workers (HCW) compared to people from community. Material Methods Study population and size included 100 healthcare workers from various departments of a tertiary care hospital and 50 individuals from a middle class community of East Delhi. Self structured questionnaire were distributed among the study population and quantitative culture from mobile phones were done. Results Total thirtee six of 100 mobile hand sets of health care workers (HCW) were colonized of which 6 were polymicrobial colonisation with average bacterial load of 2709. In the community based survey, 19 (38%) of the mobile handsets were colonized having average bacterial load of 2490 CFU per handset. Conclusion Mobile phones used by HCWs in daily practice may be a source of nosocomial infections in hospitals. There is a threat of spreading infection by mobile phone if not disinfected properly. This is similar to the importance of hand hygiene in preventing spread of infection. If use of mobile phones is imperative, then strict mobile friendly disinfection policies need to be formulated and implemented.