Factors associated with adherence to use of PPE in the workplace
| Participant characteristics | Did not completely adhere to use of PPE n=166, n (%) | Completely adherent to use of PPE n=665, n (%) | OR (95% CI) for complete adherence to use of PPE | Adjusted OR (95% CI)* for complete adherence to use of PPE |
| Age | ||||
| 18–34 years | 31 (35.6) | 56 (64.4) | Reference | Reference |
| 35–44 years | 39 (22.4) | 135 (77.6) | 1.94 (1.11 to 3.41) | 1.69 (0.92 to 3.09) |
| 45–54 years | 46 (18.0) | 209 (82.0) | 2.55 (1.49 to 4.39)† | 2.00 (1.12 to 3.58) |
| 55 years and over | 49 (15.6) | 266 (84.4) | 3.03 (1.78 to 5.16)† | 2.64 (1.49 to 4.66)† |
| Face-to-face contact with patients/service users ‡ | ||||
| No | 4 (2.8) | 140 (97.2) | Reference | Reference |
| Yes, occasionally | 13 (9.9) | 118 (90.1) | 0.25 (0.08 to 0.80) | 0.25 (0.08 to 0.81) |
| Yes, frequently | 150 (26.9) | 407 (73.1) | 0.07 (0.03 to 0.21)† | 0.07 (0.02 to 0.21)† |
| Frequency of contact with patients with COVID-19 or staff who worked closely with patients with COVID-19 ‡ | ||||
| I am never in contact myself with patients who have COVID-19 or anyone who has regular contact with patients who have COVID-19 | 29 (10.3) | 253 (89.7) | Reference | Reference |
| I am never in contact myself with patients who have COVID-19 but work closely with staff who have regular contact with patients who have COVID-19 | 21 (15.3) | 116 (84.7) | 0.63 (0.34 to 1.15) | 0.37 (0.19 to 0.74) |
| I am rarely in contact myself with patients who have COVID-19 | 44 (28.0) | 113 (72.0) | 0.30 (0.18 to 0.50)† | 0.36 (0.20 to 0.63)† |
| I am sometimes in contact myself with patients who have COVID-19 | 49 (28.8) | 113 (72.0) | 0.28 (0.17 to 0.47)† | 0.43 (0.25 to 0.77) |
| I am often in contact myself with patients who have COVID-19 | 23 (27.1) | 62 (72.9) | 0.31 (0.17 to 0.57)† | 0.55 (0.28 to 1.10) |
| I have received adequate training in my workplace for the purposes of health and safety during the COVID-19 pandemic (ie, correct use of PPE and social distancing), mean (±SD)§ | 3.30 (±1.22) | 3.59 (±1.16) | 1.22 (1.06 to 1.41) | 1.33 (1.14 to 1.55)† |
| I am given all the correct PPE that I need to do my job safely, mean (±SD)§ | 3.45 (±1.20) | 3.82 (±1.06) | 1.34 (1.15 to 1.55)† | 1.38 (1.18 to 1.63)† |
| I have enough information about which PPE to use and when to use it, mean (±SD)§ | 3.82 (±1.02) | 4.03 (±0.93) | 1.24 (1.05 to 1.47) | 1.37 (1.13 to 1.66)† |
| It does not really matter what I do, I will probably catch COVID-19 anyway, mean (±SD)§ | 2.84 (±1.00) | 2.48 (±0.95) | 0.68 (0.58 to 0.81)† | 0.71 (0.59 to 0.86)† |
| I am angry about the way PPE has been given out to me or other HCWs, mean (±SD)§ | 3.31 (±1.30) | 2.93 (±1.24) | 0.79 (0.69 to 0.90)† | 0.78 (0.68 to 0.91)† |
| I feel safe from COVID-19 at work, mean (±SD)§ | 2.69 (±1.01) | 3.12 (±1.05) | 1.47 (1.25 to 1.74)† | 1.50 (1.25 to 1.80)† |
| There is no point bothering with PPE around colleagues or social distancing if you already have a lot of contact with COVID-19 patients, mean (±SD)§ | 2.21 (±1.03) | 1.83 (±0.88) | 0.66 (0.56 to 0.79)† | 0.67 (0.56 to 0.81)† |
| My colleagues seem to take PPE and social distancing seriously, mean (±SD)§ | 3.36 (±1.12) | 3.75 (±1.02) | 1.41 (1.20 to 1.65)† | 1.48 (1.24 to 1.77)† |
| Wearing PPE makes it hard for me to do my job properly, mean (±SD)§ | 3.68 (±1.05) | 3.11 (±1.09) | 0.61 (0.51 to 0.72)† | 0.64 (0.54 to 0.77)† |
For continuous variables, where N is the same as the column heading, it is not reported in individual cells.
*Adjusting for sex, age, region of place of work, sector, work setting and face-to-face contact with patients or service users.
†P≤0.002 (applying Bonferroni correction).
‡The number of valid cases in the table is different from the total count due to the use of weighted data and rounding errors.
§Five-point scale: 1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree.
HCWs, healthcare workers; PPE, personal protective equipment.