Abstract
IntroductionAccidental exposure to blood and body fluid presents a serious public health concern, especially among healthcare workers (HCW) and constitutes a risk of transmission of blood borne viruses. Infections acquired through occupational exposure are largely preventable through strict control measures such as the use of safe devices, proper waste disposal, immunization and prompt management of exposures including the use of Post Exposure Prophylaxis. This study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of healthcare workers on post exposure prophylaxis and also determine the factors influencing reporting of occupational exposures among HCW in Fako Division, Cameroon.Methodsthis was a hospital based cross-sectional study conducted from February 2016 to July 2016 involving the administration of questionnaires to 216 health care workers in Fako division. Data collected was analyzed with SPSS version 22 and results presented as percentages and tables. Pearson chi-square test was used to determine statistically significant relationship between different factors with reporting of occupational exposures among health care workers in Fako division.Resultsa high proportion of participants 125(58%) had poor knowledge on Post Exposure Prophylaxis and 131(60.6%) of participants proved to have a positive attitude towards post exposure prophylaxis. 50.9% (110/216) of all participants had at least one occupational exposure with a low uptake 19.1(21/110) of Post Exposure Prophylaxis recorded among participants who were exposed. There was a statistically significant relationship between years of experience (p-value = 0.006, CI= 0.151-0.745) and category of health care worker (p-value= 0.022, CI=0.314-14.215) with reporting of occupational exposure (p-value< 0.05).Conclusionthis study recorded among participants a poor knowledge on post exposure prophylaxis and poor practice though a majority of study participants had possitive attitude towards PEP. Therefore, a formal training for all health care workers on post exposure prophylaxis to blood borne viruses, strict monitoring and evaluation of health care worker's adherence to standard precautions, adequate reporting of exposures and uptake of post exposure prophylaxis is recommended.
Highlights
Accidental exposure to blood and body fluid presents a serious public health concern, especially among healthcare workers (HCW) and constitutes a risk of transmission of blood borne viruses
A fairly good number of participants said they reported their exposures, this study revealed that the reporting of occupational exposure among health care workers in Fako division remain inadequate since none of the exposures were documented as recommended by the world health organization
A high rate of occupational exposures, inadequate reporting of occupational exposures and Low uptake of post exposure prophylaxis was recorded among health care workers in Fako division
Summary
Accidental exposure to blood and body fluid presents a serious public health concern, especially among healthcare workers (HCW) and constitutes a risk of transmission of blood borne viruses. This study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of healthcare workers on post exposure prophylaxis and determine the factors influencing reporting of occupational exposures among HCW in Fako Division, Cameroon. There exist no data on the prevalence of occupational accidents, the reporting of occupational exposures and the uptake of post exposure prophylaxis among health care workers in Fako division The absence of such data realized during the first phase of this study(pre-test) further raises concerns about the knowledge, attitude and practices of health care workers in Fako division. This study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude and practices of health care workers in Fako Division regarding post exposure prophylaxis to blood borne viruses and determine the factors influencing the reporting of occupational exposures in health care settings
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