Health-care providers' knowledge about prenatal screening: A study in the North of Iran

Abstract

Background: Prenatal screening for birth defects is turning into a main component of prenatal care. The success of prenatal screening programs greatly depends on health-care providers' knowledge about it. Objectives: This study aimed to assess health-care providers' knowledge about prenatal screening. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on June–October 2016 in Sari, a large city in the North of Iran. A sample of 472 obstetricians, general physicians, and midwives was recruited through quota and convenience sampling. Data on participants' knowledge about prenatal screening were collected through a 35-item self-administered knowledge questionnaire which contained the four domains of time, technique, legal issues, and follow-up assessment. The total score of the questionnaire could range from 0 to 35, with higher scores representing greater knowledge. Descriptive statistics measures, Mann–Whitney U-test and Kruskal–Wallis test, Spearman's correlation analysis, and multiple linear regression were used to analyze the data. Results: The mean score of participants' knowledge about prenatal screening was 18.34 ± 9.34. The lowest and the highest mean scores of knowledge were obtained by obstetricians and general physicians, respectively (P Conclusion: Health-care providers have limited knowledge about prenatal screening. Thus, well-designed need-based educational interventions are needed to fulfill their educational needs and advance their knowledge about prenatal screening.