Basic Knowledge of Hygiene in Voluntary Disaster Control Using - German Red Cross in the Rhein-Erft District as an Example

Full-time workers in the rescue service are often exposed to a risk of infection. The volunteers of the German disaster control (Katastrophenschutz; KatS) are exposed to a similar risk of infection when they are deployed. The aim of this study was to investigate the hygiene status of the two operational units of the German Red Cross (Deutsches Rotes Kreuz; DRK) in the Rhein-Erft District (Rhein-Erft-Kreis; REK). The 66 volunteers of the two operational units (Einsatzeinheiten; EE) "NRW BM 05" and "NRW BM 02" were assessed by means of a written questionnaire. The results showed that they had good general knowledge of hygiene.There were, however, deficits in the knowledge of specific diseases and some multi-resistant pathogens. In general, perceived risk varied greatly, and was often above 5 on a scale from 1-10, where "1" stands for no perceived risk and "10" for high perceived risk. Thus, there is a certain "concern" about getting an infection in action. Appropriate training courses are needed to optimize this situation in the future.