Antibiotic awareness and its usage in hospitals: Do our nurses possess adequate knowledge and practice?

Abstract

: Antibiotics play a monumental role in infectious diseases control and management and have been used in all drug treatment strategies. But the inappropriate use and practice of antibiotics among health professionals results in adverse effects and accelerates the growth of microbial resistance against the majority of effective antibiotics. This study aimed at assessing the knowledge and practice of antibiotic awareness and its usage among staff nurses working in hospitals and also to identify the association of demographic factors on knowledge and practice of antibiotic awareness and its usage.: A descriptive cross-sectional survey design was used. A total of 100 staff nurses (4 males and 96 females) were selected using a convenience sampling method. Data was collected using a questionnaire to assess the knowledge and a rating scale for practice about antibiotics awareness and usage.About 50 percent of the participants demonstrated good knowledge of antibiotic awareness and its usage, and 72 percent had very good practice of antibiotics usage in hospitals. A highly significant, weak positive correlation (r=0.316, at p ˂ 0.01) between knowledge and practice of antibiotic awareness and usage among staff nurses was obtained. A significant association of gender with practice (χ =59.64, p = 0.002) and educational qualification with knowledge was found (χ=53.82, p = 0.017).: The study results suggested that staff nurses in general have good knowledge of antibiotic awareness and usage and very good practice in antibiotic usage. However, there should be effective training programs to consistently keep the knowledge and practice of staff nurses regarding antibiotic awareness and its practice at a satisfactory level and to raise awareness among those who demonstrated less knowledge and practice for its judicious use and practice.