The knowledge, attitude, and practice of physicians and medical students of Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Iran, regarding standard precautions

Abstract

Received: June 2014, Accepted: February 2015 Background: Physicians and medical students are at risk of exposure to a broad range of viral pathogens through percutaneous injury, contact of mucous membrane with blood, and other potentially infectious body fluids. The objective of this study was to determine the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of physicians and medical students of Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Iran, regarding standard precautions. Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional research based on a survey performed in 3 teaching hospitals affiliated with Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences. Data were collected using a self-administered structured questionnaire. Subsequently, researchers distributed the questionnaires among the individuals who agreed to participate in the study. The participants were given instructions on completing the questionnaires. After completion of the questionnaires, they were collected and statistically processed with SPSS software using frequencies, percentages, the averages and standard deviations, and the independent ttest. All P values equal to or less than 0.05 were considered as statistically significant. Results: The response rate in this study was 95%. The mean age of subjects was 27.6 ± 5.3 years. The majority of subjects were female (62.1%), single (66.3%), and medical interns (78.9%). Most subjects were untrained on standard precautions (64.5%). The mean and standard deviations of KAP scores were 37.6 ± 7.4 (out of 46), 32.6 ± 4.5 (out of 45), and 33.06 ± 6.5 (out of 44), respectively. The independent t-test showed significant differences between knowledge and practice scores and marital status. It also showed significant differences between the practice score and training on standard precautions (P < 0.05). Conclusions: The results showed that the knowledge score was desirable, but the attitude and practice scores were not desirable. Thus, educational programs with the foundation of bloodborne infections, infection control, safety recommendations, and different aspects of standard precautions are recommended.