Abstract

Mobile phones have become necessary companions to most health care personnel and have been implicated as reservoirs of known nosocomial agents. This study was carried out to determine the type and frequency of microorganisms’ contaminating mobile phones of health workers in a University Teaching Hospital in Nigeria. Swabs of 50 mobile phones were collected and cultured, and contaminants characterized. Forty three (86%) out of 50 mobile phones were positive for microbial contamination. Samples from doctors and medical students had 100% contamination and samples from nurses 70%. Six clinically important microorganisms were found. Staphylococcus sp was most predominant and constituted 30.2% while P. aeruginosa made up 14% and Klebsiella sp, 9.3% of the entire isolates. Given the frequent occurrence of potential pathogens as contaminants, there is the need for strict adherence to proper sanitary measures by all who operate in the hospital environment to avoid dissemination of pathogenic agents.

Key words: Mobile phones, contamination, health care workers, nosocomial agent.