Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Health Science Students About the Outbreak of Water and Foodborne Diseases: A Survey in Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of health science students of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences about the outbreak of water and foodborne diseases in 2017. Methods: In this descriptive and analytic study, 335 students from school of Health and school of Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) were randomly assigned to the study. Data collecting tool was a researcher-made questionnaire containing 61 questions. The data were analyzed using SPSS 18 software. Results: The mean and standard deviation of knowledge, attitude and practice of students were (66.15 p 61.15), (66.63 p 14.68) p 66.33 and (p21.55) p65.96, respectively. Only 13.7, 6.6 and 24.5 of students had a good knowledge, attitude and good performance regarding the subject. Mean score of knowledge, attitude and practice among students of the School of Health was more than the students of HSE. The results showed a significant relationship between knowledge and attitude (p <0.001) and also attitude and practice (p<0.001). There is a significant relationship between the level of education, faculty, place of study, marital status, field of study and age with knowledge, attitude and practice (p<0.05). Conclusion: According to the average level of knowledge, attitude and practice of students, it seems necessary to plan for an effective intervention in order to improve the level of education of students who are studying in the field of health and will be the trustee of public health as people who guide other sectors of society.